Broken Shells
by Winged Monkey
Summary: Third in the Holiday Trilogy. Three months have passed since Michelangelo’s suicide attempt. His brothers still watch him closely, but they could never imagine what is going on within. Will they ever be able to find out what's really happening with Mikey?
1. Prologue

_A/N: Hello again! This is the third (and last) story in the Holiday Trilogy and is rated 'T' for violence and some mild language. It is set just before Easter (which was the 23rd of March this year). If you have not already read I'll be Home for Christmas and Resolutions, I suggest you do so before reading this fic, or you may be rather confused. You can access them through my page. I hope you enjoy this story! _

_HUGE thanks to Moogsthewriter for betaing this for me!!_

**Disclaimer: I do not own the turtles or any of their associates or enemies.**

* * *

March 19

Well, it's been over three months since I tried to…well, I need to say it…I need to admit that's what I did…I tried to kill myself. I still can't believe that I did that. Scared me so much when my bros told me that I did that and I couldn't even remember it. Then even scarier is the dream that I had last night. I could see myself walking over to the edge…stepping in like the water was just another part of the floor…falling…

I woke up screaming. I was so scared…still am, actually. I guess Leo heard me 'cause he came running into my room. I was so glad to see him. Even just remembering scares me. No, no reason for a big, teary, water-spot to be on the page. I'm not crying! I'm not! I WON'T! I can't…

It's also been over three months since I made that promise. I can easily say that not a single moment has been easy. I don't know how much longer I can take this pressure. My heart is burning and aching and every day I feel rage build up in me that I can barely control. Lately it's been even harder.

My bros aren't buying my happy-go-lucky-and-everything-is-ok act. I think they're just playing along to humor me. Maybe they think that me pretending to be me is helping me cope. If that's so, then they're _way_ off base. I hate it. I hate every minute of it, but I don't know how to be or do anything else.

I, well Raph and Donnie too, tried to keep Leo from knowing about what happened for as long as we could. I couldn't let him do anything else stupidly heroic. That stuff is for the Silver Sentry (cool a dude as I've ever met), but Leo just needs to take a chill pill and not blame himself about me or anything. After all, it's my fault that he got that big hole in his stomach in the first place. He's pretty much all better now, though Sensei and Don practically had to force him to rest.

I should've known that he'd find out really fast, no matter what we did. Took him only four days—and he was all drugged out for most of them—to find out what happened. The second he got up, he's been like my shadow. I think today's the first time he's not been making sure he knows exactly where I am, what I'm doing, and even what I'm writing at all times. That's why I haven't written anything for the past two months. He's annoying, but I actually don't really mind. It kinda comforts me knowing that if I try to do anything, he'll keep me safe. That's what big brothers are for, right? But I'm still worried I might hurt him. Again.

Donnie did another checkup on me this morning. He's been doing that stuff—taking blood samples and scanning my body and stuff like that—as soon as he could after…it. He says that the only thing different is that some of my horror moans, I mean _hormones, _are higher. Other than that, nothing's wrong with me. I almost wish something was wrong with me, 'cause then he'd know how to fix me.

Master Splinter's been trying to fix me too. I've actually been meditating with him every day. And I mean real meditation, not just the close my eyes and think about comic book and wonder how much longer do I need to sit in the most uncomfortable position in the world type. It's helped, a little tiny itsy bitsy amount, I guess. Haven't tried to kill Raph – lately anyway, which is saying something.

Raph's been the one acting the weirdest. He's gone and become all Leo-like. I don't think I like that. I think at one point, a really long time ago – like, maybe when I was eight? – I thought it would be kinda cool if Raph mellowed out and was more like Leo, but now…I don't think so. One uber-responsible turtle is enough. I'm really missing ol' Raphie-boy. He hasn't been trying to whack me upside the head or anything, lately. Instead, he's just all quiet and stuff. He's really freaking me out. I know I'm not a good liar, but he is. Every time I ask him what's up, he just gives me this look that I seriously thought only Leo could do. He and Leo haven't even been fighting or anything. It's like everything got turned upside down, and I don't like it.

I didn't mean to hurt them so bad. Oh, god. I just wish everything could be like it used to be. I don't want it to be like this…Why? Why the shell did this have to happen?

* * *

_Please review! Flames will be used warm my toes. _


	2. Chapter 1

_A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! A HUGE thanks to Moogs for betaing this for me! _

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything other than the plot**

* * *

Karai looked up from the outline of a speech that she was supposed to give at the annual memorial of her adopted father as two Foot technicians walked into her office.

"Yes, what is it?"

They bowed. "There are still no signs of any of the turtles, mistress."

"Nothing?"

"Absolutely nothing. Every manhole cover, every known associate, and every known hangout is being monitored as you commanded. Even so, there has not been a single trace of them."

"You said that you are keeping a watch on their human contacts?"

"Yes, mistress."

"Any changes in behavior?"

"Only that a," the technician checked his chart, "Mr. Arnold Casey Jones is spending a significantly larger amount of time in the home of Ms. April O'Neil."

"Do we have the information as to why?"

"They are dating."

"I see. Very well. Alert me the moment you have information."

The two technicians bowed and exited her office. Karai lay the outline down on her desk and stared thoughtfully out the window. _You have been either very clever or very lucky, Leonardo. That is, if you are still alive. Your friends certainly seem to think that you are._ _I don't know how you've been able to elude us, but you cannot hide forever._

A small smile tugged at the corners of her thinly-pressed lips. _I certainly wonder how our little 'pet' is doing._ Leaning over, she pressed a small orange button on her intercom.

"Begin stage two."

* * *

"High block! Double punch! Knife-blade front kick! Now your kata!"

Splinter watched proudly as each of his four sons performed the series of movements perfectly.

"And _shiagari_!" He tapped the end of his walking stick on the stones.

Snapping their feet together, the turtles all bowed with the ease of much practice. Their master smiled at them.

"Well done, all of you. That is all of your training for today, though I would like Michelangelo to stay so that we may continue with our meditations. During that time, please try to remain quiet. One last thing," he added almost as an afterthought, "I believe that it is now safe to venture back to the surface, provided that you are all careful. While one storm may have passed, it is possible that another is brewing. If you do go, as you no doubt shall, I simply request that you travel in pairs for the next month. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Sensei."

"Good. You are dismissed."

As they had many times before over the past couple of months, Leonardo, Donatello, and Raphael walked out of the dojo, leaving their brother and Sensei behind. By silent, unanimous decision, they made their way to Donatello's laboratory.

Once inside, Leonardo broke the silence. "So, anything?"

"Nothing." Donatello shook his head worriedly. "Physiologically he's fine, but psychologically…"

"Psychologically he ain't alright." Raphael finished, snorting exasperatedly.

"Exactly. I just hope Master Splinter can do more for him than I can. I can heal bodies, but spirits just aren't my thing."

"You did your best, Don." Leonardo placed a friendly hand on his brother's shoulder. The gentle smile on his face was soon replaced by worry as he sighed resignedly. "Mike's nightmares have been getting worse. At first he would barely even notice them, but they've gotten to the point where they have woken him up."

"How d'you know this, Leo?" Raphael glanced at his oldest brother suspiciously. "Have you been not sleepin' again?"

"I know because he was screaming last night." Leonardo's eyes narrowed as he avoided answering Raphael's question. To his surprise, his normally hot-headed brother did not press the matter. _He's worried,_ the blue-clad turtle realized sadly. _He's just as worried as I am._

* * *

"Breathe. Relax. Feel the tension melt away from your body."

Michelangelo did as his master instructed. He was sitting in the middle of the dojo in the lotus position, holding perfectly still. The only indication that he was even still alive was the slight rise and fall of his chest. A wave of calmness swept over him. He was beginning to understand why Leonardo found meditation so attractive. As the rush of thoughts speeding through his head calmed, he found his mind drifting into total darkness.

"Find the center of your tension," Sensei's voice intoned. "Find it and grab hold of it.

For some reason, Michelangelo's thoughts kept drifting to the back of his neck, so he focused as hard as he could there. In his mind's eye, a glowing red orb began to shine through the blackness. The turtle could feel himself wanting strongly to reach out and touch it. However, every time he tried, it managed to stay just beyond his grasp. With each attempt, Mikey became only more frustrated and the orb grew larger and deeper red.

* * *

Leonardo ran a hand over the top of his head. Michelangelo's worsening condition was worrying him very badly, but he was finding that he was having a difficult time thinking clearly. His heartstrings tore just a little more every day as he watched his brother slip further and further into despair behind the front that he was putting up. To make matters worse, he being forced to helplessly watch the same broken-heartedness affect both of his other brothers. It was getting to be too much.

All of a sudden, he realized that both Donatello and Raphael were looking at him as though they were expecting him to say something. The burden of his responsibility pressed heavily down upon his shoulders. He had nothing to say, nothing that would encourage them. Various thoughts flashed through his mind as he tried to come up with something.

"Want to go on a run?" he suggested weakly, mentally kicking himself. _That's all you can suggest? A run?_

To surprise, Raphael eagerly accepted. "Finally! Get to get out. I'm tired of bein' caged in for so long!"

"Donnie, want to come?"

"Thanks, but no thanks. I've got some stuff I need to take care of in peace and quiet."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Go. Have fun. You two need it." Donatello wearily plopped down into his chair, refusing his brothers' further requests to join them.

At last, both Raphael and Leonardo decided to just go and leave Donatello to his own devices. The red-clad turtle practically bounded out of the lab and Leo followed closely behind him. Before he could exit, though, Donatello grabbed hold of his wrist.

"Talk to Raph. Mikey's…state is affecting him more than he's letting on," the purple-clad turtle hissed quickly. "He's not opening up to me, so please try—without making him too angry."

The eldest turtle found himself again giving his second-youngest brother a comforting smile. "I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks, and be careful."

"Leo, you coming?" Raphael rough voice called quietly back towards the doorway.

Leonardo hurried out of the lab and towards his waiting brother. "Sorry, Don was giving me the 'be careful' talk."

"I've got m'phone right here an' two of the best things to keep me 'safe' right here." Raphael patted his belt next to his sai. "Now let's get goin'."

The two turtle brothers headed silently out into the sewer.

* * *

The redness inside of Michelangelo's head was spreading even further. _It's too big for me to grab! How do I get back?_ The tension that had once been represented as a single, small sphere was now completely surrounding him. _I can't wake up,_ he realized with in a panic, vaguely aware of the sweat that was starting to poor down his forehead. _What do I do? What the shell do I do?_

* * *

_Please review! Flames will be used to bake my breakfast. _**:-)**


	3. Chapter 2

_A/N: Aw, thanks guys! You are all really wonderful! Hey, guess what? Lucky you, I have an all day class tomorrow so this is going up early!_

_HUGE thanks, Moogs! You're awesome!!_

**Disclaimer: Still, the answer is no, I don't own them**

* * *

"Mistress!" One of the Foot technicians that given her the report earlier came running into Karai's office without knocking, barely stopping to bow.

"This had better be important," she snapped. "Otherwise…" She left the threat hang in the air.

The technician gulped nervously. "I-it is very important, mistress. The turtles, two of them, have been spotted."

"Where?"

"Emerging from a manhole in an alley just off of Thomson Street."

"Which ones are they?"

"The ones called Leonardo and Raphael."

"Do they know that they have been spotted?"

"If they do, they have given no indication to show it."

"Good. I want three squadrons sent there immediately. Now leave me. I have many matters to attend to."

"Yes, mistress." The technician made sure to bow fully before turning heal and running out of the room.

Karai again pressed the orange button on her intercom. "Chaplain, it's time. Prepare the device."

"Okay, Mistress Karai." He sounded very happy, even excited.

Karai rolled her eyes as she stood up and then walked into the small closet in the corner of her office. _That Chaplain,_ she thought as she quickly changed. _He has _way_ too much energy and enthusiasm—like a crazy puppy. It is rather cute._ A smile was still hovering on her lips as she exited in full battle gear.

* * *

The redness was now squeezing up against Michelangelo. He could not move, could not even turn his head. He tried to cry out, but found that his vocal chords refused to work. Even breathing was becoming a difficult task. The pressure of the redness felt like it was slowly asphyxiating him. _I'm going to die!_

"Michelangelo!" A faint voice called from what seemed like a great distance. The redness let up some in the direction the voice had come from. Tearfully, his eyes darted around, trying to find the source of the voice.

"Michelangelo, my son, I am here. I am with you."

The redness receded further. The turtle found that he could move again and he began running towards the voice. Suddenly, the redness disappeared and Michelangelo found himself in a familiar, comforting presence.

"Shh, shh, my son. It is alright. You are safe."

Michelangelo's eyes flew open and he found himself back in the lair, sitting exactly where he had started, drenched with sweat and shaking terribly. However, Master Splinter had moved much closer and was grasping his hands. The rat was staring steadily into his youngest son's eyes. Completely terrified, Michelangelo couldn't hold back the tears that were forming in the corners of his eyes. Master Splinter sighed quietly and gently caressed the sobbing turtle.

"It's alright, you're safe now."

"But what happened? What's going on?"

"I'm not entirely certain, but I believe you found the source of your malaise. This is very good."

Michelangelo pulled back and looked at him in disbelief. "Sensei, it tried to kill me! How is that good?"

The rat smiled tenderly. "It means that we know what we are up against. It seems that there is something affecting your chi on the back of your neck. Remember, we can only know how to defeat an enemy that we know."

"I wish I didn't know it," Michelangelo muttered, standing up.

* * *

Leonardo and Raphael leapt across a gap between two rooftops. For the first time in months, Raph found a huge grin spreading across his face as the adrenaline pumped through his body. Leonardo could feel himself grinning wildly as well. _It feels good to have enough room to _really_ run. The sewers are nice, but they can be so…confining._

After almost a half hour, they stopped on a roof that had a large water tower. Leonardo looked around in surprise.

"Well this sure is a familiar surprise. Looks like they put the water tower back up, though."

Raphael gave him a strange look. "What the shell are you talking about Leo?"

"Don't you remember this rooftop, Raph?"

The hot-headed turtle shook his head negatively. "It's just some ol' roof." He rolled his eyes. "Not exactly excitin'."

"Raph," Leonardo sighed exasperatedly, "this is the same rooftop where we first faced the Shredder with Master Splinter."

Raphael looked around again in surprise. "Looks like it ain't changed since we were here—'cept putting the tower back up."

Leonardo walked over to the higher part of the roof, climbed up, and sat down on it, letting his legs hang over the side. "A lot sure has changed since then."

"That's for sure." Raphael joined his brother. "You've changed, I've changed, even Mikey…" his voice trailed off.

Leonardo stared off into the distance. "I'm not sure I like these changes."

"Me neither, bro." Raphael stared intently at Leonardo. "I mean, why the shell did it have to be _Mikey,_damnit!" He leapt back down and started to pace around. "Why couldn't it be me with all the problems? I mean, Mike'd never do some o' the stuff he did. I shoulda been there!"

"You _were_ there," Leonardo reminded him softly.

"I mean I shoulda been awake. Instead that…that b—"

"Raph! Language!"

"Damnit, Leo! She got to him somehow! Heck, she got to you an' I was useless! USELESS!"

The eldest turtle's shoulders slumped. This tirade was sounding very familiar. "There wasn't any more that you could do, Raph. You did your best."

"And it wasn't good enough!" The hot-headed turtle stormed over to the edge of the roof. "It wasn't good enough," he repeated in a whisper.

"Raph, I—"

"Shut it, Leo. You were jumped an' surprised. I knew what was comin' when we stormed the place and still went down."

"If I had been ready and paying better attention, they never would have jumped me and you would have never needed to come after me in the first place," Leonardo fired back, hopping down from the ledge.

"No way. You ain't gonna play that card on me. Wake up and smell the real world! Even you lose sometimes, Your Most High and Mighty. I'm the one who needs to be able to get you out of your mess!"

"You shouldn't even have to do that! It's my _duty_ to keep you all safe and I failed that. You got hurt. _Mikey_ got hurt! Why won't you just blame me for it?"

"Well it's _my_ duty to make sure you could do _your_ duty! You're not the only older bro here, y'know! It was my fault Mikey got hurt!"

"No, it was my fault!"

"It was my fault, Leo!"

The two turtles were now practically in each other's face, their eyes shooting daggers at each other. The tension there on the roof was palpable. All of a sudden, they both stepped backwards, laughing, and the tension was broken.

"Look at us. What a crazy thing to be arguing about."

"Yeah." Raphael still felt tense, hating that he had allowed his emotions to slip out, especially in front of Leonardo. Suddenly he drew both of his sai.

"Raph, what are you doing?" Leonardo immediately put a hand on the hilt of his katana, ready to defend himself.

"I know whose fault it was, an' it ain't you or me."

The hot-headed turtle used one of his sai to point behind his brother. Leonardo turned his head, still keeping Raphael in his sight. What he saw caused him to spin around quickly. Row upon row of Foot ninja were lining up along the edges of nearby rooftops. With them, in full Shredder armor, Karai stood at the edge of the closest rooftop, glaring down at the two turtles in contempt. She raised her katana, using it to point at Leonardo and Raphael.

"Kill them."

* * *

_Please don't hurt me! (looks around, hoping to NOT see any sharp-looking weapons) Instead, why don't you review? Flames will be used to create a huge shield-like-thingy to block sharp-looking weapons!_


	4. Chapter 3

_A/N: Thanks, everyone, for the reviews! I love reading what you have to say. On a bit of a side note, Sensibly Insane pointed out to me that there was a bit of a plot hole regarding the gunshot wound Donatello received in Resolutions, so I made a couple of changes in chapters 9 and 10. Anyway, thanks, Moogs, for betaing this for me!_

**Disclaimer: No miracles have happened.**

* * *

Many Foot ninja came swarming down onto the rooftop. Leonardo and Raphael remained back-to-back with their weapons drawn.

"Leo, really you shouldn't have. A head-bustin' party just for me?"

"This isn't what I planned. They were supposed to bring balloons and cake too!"

"I hope you were plannin' for that cake to be chocolate." Raphael sent a ninja flying with a well placed front-kick and then leapt into the middle of a group, quickly dispatching them all.

"Sorry," Leonardo blocked the sword of another ninja with one of his katana and then knocked it unconscious with the pummel of his other. "All they had was coconut."

A slice from a sai and a swift elbow in the gut caused a rapidly approaching ninja to crumple up in pain. "Just like old times, huh, Leo?"

"Yeah." Leonardo grunted slightly as he pushed away the sword of another Foot with his katana. The Foot stumbled backwards and Leonardo leapt towards it, landing directly in its stomach.

Suddenly, the sword-wielding turtle had to leap backwards as Karai landed where he had been only a moment before, her katana plunging into the cement of the rooftop. She stood up, sliding the sword out of the cement with a grating screech.

"You will fall this time, Leonardo." She charged at him.

"Don't count on it."

He easily did a flip over her head, landing behind her. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Raphael being surrounded by the Foot ninja, but he looked like he was quite capable of protecting himself. However, in the moment of his distraction, Karai had turned, swinging her katana at his head. Leonardo barely dodged it, receiving a scratch along his cheek.

"You're slipping, Leonardo."

"Never." The turtle was now angry, though mostly at himself. _How could I have dropped my guard like that? _He twirled around, using both his katana and his feet to drive Karai back. They locked swords, their faces only inches from each other.

* * *

"Hey Donnie."

"Oh, hi Mikey." Donatello looked up from his computer screen. "What's up?"

"Nothing, I guess." Michelangelo flopped down on the spare cot.

"Nothing, hm? I see. Want to play some videogames?"

"No." The normally vibrant voice was dull and flat.

"How about you read me one of your comics? How about Justice Force number thirty two? That's your favorite, right?"

"Don't feel like it." The orange-clad turtle's shoulders slumped forwards.

"Mikey…?" Donatello swiveled the chair around so that he could see his brother. "Are you alright? Something happen?"

"No, no, I'm fine." The youngest straightened back up and spread a smile across his face. "Wanna watch a movie? I'll totally get something that's light on story and heavy on gory."

"Mikey," the older of the two repeated in a gently scolding tone. "You don't have to put up an act like this."

"What do you mean, dude?" Michelangelo's smile became even more strained.

Donatello only gave him a look. The forced happiness fell from the orange-clad turtle's body like a cloak, seeming to pool around his ankles before oozing out and away. His shoulders slumped forwards again and he looked down to his hands that were clasping and unclasping rapidly.

"I…I just want to be me again."

Though leaning his head forwards slightly so as to be better able to hear, Donatello remained quiet, waiting for his brother to continue. Should Michelangelo open up to him, the insights gleaned could provide valuable information. _I might even be able to help him in some way._

With a small sigh, Michelangelo continued softly, seeming to forget that his brother was even there. "I want to go back to how things were. I _want_ to be able to be as shallow as I want and just be a kid like normal. I mean, someone's got to do it, right?"

Michelangelo leapt up off of the cot and began to pace. Donatello was struck with how similar the motions were to those of Leonardo.

* * *

Once again, Leonardo and Karai pushed each other back with the force of their blows. Karai ducked under a swing that would have removed her head from her shoulders. Leonardo sprang upwards, avoiding her counterattack.

Meanwhile, Raphael was making quick work of the Foot ninja; many were already lying around the rooftop. However, more kept coming and he was growing tired. Even so, he continued slashing, ducking, punching, and kicking. Suddenly, he saw stars as a lucky punch managed to land itself straight on his jaw. He stumbled backwards, his shell ending up against the wall at the edge of the rooftop.

Now Raphael was mad.

As adrenaline pumped through his veins, he rushed towards the Foot that were rapidly surrounding him. A well placed slash knocked out one and roundhouse kick easily took care of five more. With every one that fell, Raphael became even more enraged. The angrier he became, the more energy he found he had.

"This is for Mikey," he growled, punching a Foot in the gut with the pommel of his sai.

Leonardo slid under Karai's legs, barely avoiding a slash from her tanto. Even so, Karai managed to land a kick on the side of his head as he was leaping up. The turtle stumbled back a little, somehow keeping his balance while the ground around him was spinning. As quickly as he could, he ran back at Karai. With one sword, he feinted to the left and then, with the other, he sliced at her. The very tip caught her along the cheek, giving her a wound that matched his.

"Seems like you are slipping, Karai," Leonardo taunted, blocking her katana with one of his own. A strike with his other katana sent her tanto flying across the rooftop.

They both sprang away from each other, panting slightly. By this point, they had been fighting for almost fifteen straight minutes.

"So tell me, Leonardo," an unpleasant smirk spread across Karai's face. "How is your precious Michelangelo?"

"Why would you care?"

"Just curious. Has he killed himself yet?" Her smirk grew as she saw that her jibe had obviously had an effect. "No worries, if he hasn't yet, he will soon enough."

Shocked, Leonardo stared at her as her words sunk in. That was the last straw. Taking a deep breath, the blue-clad turtle ran at her yet again, both of his katana held at the ready. Karai pulled something out from behind her back and threw it on the ground, right in front of her opponent's feet. It exploded, flashing a bright light and sending powder straight into the turtle's eyes. Leonardo stumbled backwards, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand and coughing violently.

"Raph! I can't see!"

Raphael looked over his opponent's shoulders and saw his brother stumbling backwards, swinging wildly with his swords. Karai had sheathed her katana and was silently withdrawing a _manriki-gusari_.

"Hang on, bro!"

With a quick punch, the red-clad turtle knocked the Foot ninja down and ran towards his brother's aid. Karai spun around to face him.

The chain from the _manriki-gusari _sped towards his face. He blocked, but it wrapped around his sai and down around his wrist. Karai yanked on the chain, pulling him forwards towards the waiting dagger. Not wanting her to be able to keep the chain taut, Raphael darted forwards. The chain fell off of his sai and wrist.

He slashed the air where Karai had been only a second before. She leaped up and over him, using his shoulders like a spring board. He spun around to face her. Again, she threw the _manriki-gusari_ at him. This time, he ducked out of the way.

"Raph, what's going on?" Leonardo called from behind him.

"Just stay right there."

Karai smirked again, pulling something from a pocket in her belt. "As fun as this has been, Raphael, I must be going." With a quick flick of her wrist, she threw a pellet. The moment it hit the ground, it exploded in a puff of smoke. Raphael coughed, being careful to not let any of the noxious cloud into his eyes. It took only seconds for the smoke to clear, but by then Karai was gone.

"What they shell was that about?" Raphael growled as he walked back towards his brother. Leonardo, hearing footsteps, began to swing his sword in the other turtle's direction.

"Whoa, bro, it's me."

"Sorry, Raph. Are there any more?"

"Nah, an' Karai ran away too."

Leonardo sheathed his katana with a sigh, stumbling forwards. Raphael rushed to his brother's side, catching him before he could fall over.

"Whoa, now. You okay? Hurt someplace?"

Leonardo shook his head slightly. "Fine. I'm fine. We've got to get back to the lair _now_."

He pulled out of Raphael's grasp and felt the ground in front of him with his foot before carefully taking a step. Less carefully now, he took several more steps until he had almost reached the edge of the rooftop. To Raphael's horror, he obviously was not stopping. Running forwards, the red-clad turtle again grabbed his brother's arm, just barely keeping him from tripping over the low wall and falling into the alleyway below.

"Leo! What the shell are you doing? You still can't see, you moron!"

"Raph," Leonardo replied with a shaky, grim laugh, "I can't see, smell, or sense anyone or anything's chi right now. It's all I can do to just hear things and feel the roof underneath me!"

"Then yer goin' to sit down right now an' not move one blasted muscle 'til Donnie gets here."

"Raph, you don't understand! We've got to get back to the lair!"

"What I understand is that you're going to sit down right here or so help me I'm goin' to knock ya so hard that you _have_ to sit!"

"If you just get me into the sewers, I'll be fine. We've got to get to Mikey!"

"What the shell're you talkin' about?" Raphael was becoming even more exasperated.

"Trust me. I'll explain on the way back, but we've got to get to Mikey _now_!"

"Fine," Raphael grumbled, feeling both panic and annoyance at the same time, and it wasn't something he liked to be feeling. "But you're gonna have to let me help you or you're gonna be eatin' pavement."

"Deal. Let's go!"

* * *

_Please review! Flames will be used to roast marshmallows!_


	5. Chapter 4

_A/N: Aw, thanks guys! Again, a HUGE thanks to Moogs for betaing this! :D_

**Disclaimer: Still don't own anything**

* * *

Karai settled back into her plush office chair, dressed again in her business suit. A Foot technician was presenting the most recent video footage that they had captured of their terrapin enemies. It had been edited so that it showed only Leonardo and none of the Foot ninja or even Raphael, making it seem as though the katana-wielding turtle was practicing fighting there on the rooftop. A tiny sneer tugged at the edges of Karai's mouth as the footage came to an end.

"Very good. Make sure that this video gets sent to the proper stations."

"As you wish, Mistress." The technician shut down the projector. "If I may, Mistress, you could have destroyed them on the roof this evening. Why are you content with just this?"

Karai's jaw-line hardened. "I want them to know suffering as I have known suffering. The turtles hold two things very dear: their secrecy and their family. I will rip both from Leonardo before he dies a painful and heartbroken death!"

* * *

"You know, you don't have to always act like a kid if you don't want to, Mikey." Donatello watched as his only younger brother continued to pace.

"I know…" Michelangelo sighed deeply. "But it was always so much fun. I didn't have to be all serious and focus and stuff like Leo; I didn't need to get all angry all the time 'cause Raph always did all the getting mad for me; and I didn't ever want to be as smart as you. Shell, I can't even build anything more than a house of cards!"

"Mikey, you're brilliant in your own way. I mean, think about how all your videogame training was the best weapon we had during the invasion."

"Like it was that big of a deal." Michelangelo snorted. "You could've figured it out easy."

"But I didn't. You were the hero. Not to mention that you're still the Battle Nexus champion."

"It doesn't even feel like that matters anymore!" The youngest turtle punched the wall ferociously and then resumed pacing as though nothing had happened.

Donatello looked at him in shock. _He's pacing like _Raph_, not Leo!_

Before either of the two turtles could continue with their discussion, Raphael's voice started frantically yelling for both of the turtles from the front door. Anxiously, Donatello and Michelangelo rushed from the laboratory only to see Raphael practically supporting Leonardo. They were both sporting new bruises.

"Leo! Raph! What happened?"

Raphael looked extremely relieved to see them, especially Michelangelo, as the two younger turtles hurried towards him.

"Glad yer alive, shell-fer-brains."

"Um, thanks?"

Michelangelo looked searchingly at Donatello. The purple-clad turtle shrugged confusedly.

"Guys, what happened to you?" Donatello was becoming increasingly worried about Leonardo's lack of movement.

Before Raphael could answer, Leonardo suddenly buckled forwards as though his legs were unable to support him. Raphael barely managed to catch him before he fell. Donatello grabbed his eldest brother's other arm

"Leo? Leo, what's wrong?"

Getting no answer, Donatello looked desperately at Raphael.

"The last one must've gone." Raphael said cryptically as he helped Donatello lay Leonardo down on the brick floor.

"The last what? What happened to you guys?"

Raphael quickly related the attack of the Foot, ending with the powder that Karai had thrown in Leonardo's face though he left out Karai's threat on Michelangelo's life. "On the way back, hearin' got lost too an' he couldn't walk no more without runnin' into stuff. Guess feelin' went also."

Donatello's forehead creased in consternation. "I've heard of a lot of things, but I've never heard of any sort of drug or chemical that could completely remove a person's senses. I mean, there's some, but not that do it like this where they're just suddenly gone without anything else – like delirium or seizures – happening. Let's get him up to the lab so I can run some test quickly."

With ease, Raphael picked up his eldest brother and headed towards the laboratory. Donatello rushed before him to make the cot ready again as well as to quickly secure some supplies. Much more slowly, Michelangelo followed behind them with an increasing sense of dread.

As soon as Raphael had laid his brother's limp form on the cot, Donatello used a cotton swab to collect some of the powder from Leonardo's nostril. With the simple ease of much practice, he spread what he had collected onto a glass slide and inserted the slide into a small machine.

"It's a spectrometer," he said to no one in particular. Looking up, the purple clad turtle saw Michelangelo standing nervously in the door frame. Donatello smiled gently. "Why don't you go get Master Splinter? I may need his help with this."

A quiet nod and then the youngest turtle was gone.

The moment that he was sure Michelangelo was out of earshot, Donatello turned to Raphael who was wiping the rest of the residual powder off of Leonardo.

"Okay, what else happened? What was with the whole 'glad you're alive' thing when you got back?"

Raphael cleared his throat, hesitating to answer.

"Look, I know if it hadn't been something big, you guys would have just waited for me to come get you in the Battle Shell."

"Jus' somethin' Karai said 'bout Mikey," the red-clad turtle reluctantly began. "Leo insisted on comin' right back."

"What did Karai say?" Donatello demanded.

"She said Mikey's gonna try to kill himself again an' from what Leo said, she's pretty sure 'bout it. He also said she had somethin' to do with the first time. Guess I kinda panicked after hearin' that, though don't tell Mike I was worried 'bout him."

"But is that even possible, I mean what Karai said?"

Raphael shrugged. "Yer askin' me?"

Just then, Donatello's machine started to beep and then a set of numbers and letters popped up on the small screen on the side.

"Whatever that powder was," Donatello studied the readout, "it was made almost entirely out of carbon and calcium hydroxyl-apatite. It's like it's made out of bone or something."

"And it may be." Master Splinter and Michelangelo walked into the room. The turtle looked as if he knew full well that a conversation had taken place that his brothers didn't want him to hear. Nonetheless, he walked over and took hold of his eldest brother's hand while Splinter placed a furry hand on the brow of his eldest son.

"I have read about certain magical powders made out of the tissues and bones of certain animals that produce the effects that Michelangelo has described to me."

"But aren't magical potions impossible myths, Sensei?"

The rat cocked one of his overgrown eyebrows and looked at his second youngest son in amusement. "Some would say that the existence of giant reptiles in the sewers of New York City would also be an 'impossible myth'."

Donatello smiled slightly, chastised.

"But will he be okay, Sensei? I mean, he's not going to always be like that, right?"

"Such potions, at least those that I have read about, usually only last for an hour at most, so yes, Michelangelo, your brother should be fine."

As he spoke, Leonardo's eyes focused, losing the glazed-over look. Immediately, his gaze shot to his youngest brother, panic mixed with concern.

"Hey, dude, how're you feeling?

Leonardo's eyes relaxed, obviously showing relief. Within a few moments, the rest of his senses had returned as well and he sat up on the cot.

"Did you—"

"I already talked with Donnie," Raphael cut him off.

"Good. How are you feeling, Mike?" Leonardo turned to the youngest, concern in his eyes.

"Fine. Seriously, what's up with you guys?"

The eldest turtle shot a glance at Raphael who gave a curt, negative shake of the head. However, before Leonardo could say anything, Master Splinter clasped his hands tightly over his ears, cringing.

"Where is that terrible noise coming from?" he yelled.

The turtles looked at each other, confused in the silence. "What noise, Sensei?"

"I know not what it is, Donatello. Are you certain none of your inventions are currently on?"

"None of them are, Master, except for my computer and spectrometer, and they don't even have speakers."

Michelangelo shook his head blearily, passing his hand over the top of his head. "I don't feel too hot, dudes."

"What's wrong, Mike?" Raphael rushed to his baby brother's side.

"Sit down, Mike; you're looking really pale," Leonardo ordered, standing up off of the cot with the intention of making his baby brother comply.

Michelangelo shook his head stubbornly. "I'll be fine in a sec."

"No," Donatello said emphatically as he turned off the spectrometer in hopes of getting rid of the mysterious noise, "I agree with Leo. You need to sit down."

Instead of answering, Michelangelo swayed for a moment. Suddenly his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed into Raphael's arms.

* * *

_Well, this is the last of my buffer chapters. I don't have any more written at this point and I have a couple of huge projects that I need to finish before the end of the semester. I'll try to keep posting a chapter every Saturday, but I cannot promise anything. Please don't hurt me! Instead, to encourage me, why don't you review? Flames will be used for roasting hotdogs. :)_


	6. Chapter 5

_A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! Well, I managed to have enough time to write and ended up with my longest chapter up to this point. _:) _HUGE thanks for betaing this, Moogs! You're totally awesome!_

**Disclaimer: The moment it happens, I will let you know. Oh, and a forewarning: this chapter does contain some mild swearing**

* * *

"…and there will never be another man quite like my father."

Karai paused, looking out at her audience. An entire crowd of people were gathered in the Oroku Saki Memorial Library while she stood in front of the green statue of her adopted father. Someone in the audience sniffed quietly and many were on the verge of shedding tears. Karai allowed a small, sad smile to pull on the corners of her lips. "I miss him dearly."

Glancing quickly towards the television crew standing unobtrusively in the back of the room, Karai pulled a new sheet of paper to the front of her speech outline.

"Now, on a more personal note, I have recently been informed that the police have begun to draw closer to finding the one responsible for the brutal attempt on my life in December of last year. And so, I wish to say this to him, wherever he might be," she looked directly into the camera. "Wherever you are hiding, you will be found and you will be brought to justice for your crimes. You have my personal promise."

Had any of the turtles or their friends been watching at that time, they would have instantly recognized the look on her face as a challenge. However, at that moment the turtles had other things on their mind; namely, the collapse of Michelangelo and the soundless noise that apparently only Master Splinter could hear.

"Quick! Lay him down!" Donatello ordered.

Leonardo and Raphael lifted Michelangelo's limp form onto the cot where Donatello immediately began checking his brother's vital signs. Confusion crossed the scientific turtle's face.

"What is it, Don," Leonardo demanded.

"His pulse is steady, his temperature is normal, and there are no external signs of injury or internal damage such as a stroke or heart attack. I'd say he's perfectly healthy."

"Then what's wrong?" the two older turtles said at the same time.

"I don't know." Worry and consternation were apparent on the second youngest's face. "Maybe it has something to do with that noise Sensei's hearing."

Master Splinter was standing on the side of the room, his hands covering his ears and an expression of pain and intense concentration on his face.

"Raph, go call April. Don and I will see what we can do about Mikey and Sensei."

"Gotcha." The red-clad turtle pulled out his shell cell and stepped out of the room.

The moment he left, a look of slight relief spread across the rat's face. "The sound is not as strong now."

Donatello and Leonardo exchanged looks. With a quick flip of his wrist, the purple-clad turtle turned on the spectrometer.

"How about now, Sensei?"

"It's still much less. Present, yet much diminished."

Just then, Raphael walked back in, coming up next to Michelangelo's cot. The expression of pain again crossed Splinter's face.

"April's gonna be here as fast as she can." He was obviously trying to keep his emotions in check as he looked down on the still form of his baby brother.

"Good. Raph, I need for you to hold still for a moment."

"Huh? Why?"

"Just a hunch." Donatello examined his brother's shoulder, just behind the rim of his shell. With a cry of discovery, he pulled a tiny, silver disk-like object off of Raphael.

"Don, what is it?"

"A speaker. I'm guessing this is the source of both the mysterious noise and whatever's wrong with Mikey."

"Can you turn it off?" The blue-clad turtle glanced at Michelangelo. "And will it help?"

"I'll see what I can do." Donatello was already sitting at his workbench, screwdriver in hand. It was only a matter of moments before he had disassembled it completely. "Let me know when you can't hear the sound anymore, Sensei."

Master Splinter nodded his head slightly. After another moment of Donatello's fiddling, the rat let out a sigh of relief. "It is gone."

"What is that thing, Donnie?"

"It's a sonic amplifier that was emitting a wavelength that was beyond our range to hear."

"Could the Foot track us through it?"

"Doubtful." Donatello looked down at the parts. "There's nothing here that looks like a tracker. Plus, I reinforced the lair a while back so that trackers other than my own couldn't work here. There's only a small timer, probably to make sure that it wouldn't start until after you got back."

"Then what was it for?"

"Yeah, an' how'd it get stuck ta my back?"

"Raph, I don't know. Probably during your fight, though someone would have had to touch you in order for it to attach itself to your skin like that."

"Karai!" the hot-headed turtle realized. He opened his mouth to swear but then, looking at his master standing there, changed his choice of words. "That musta been why that witch ran off so quick."

"But what was it for?" Leonardo insisted.

"That." Donatello looked pointedly at Michelangelo who looked as though he was merely sleeping. "It didn't have an effect on any of the rest of us, just Mikey."

"But—"

"Look, I don't know how or why!" Donatello snapped. "I just know what happened."

"If it's off, shouldn't he be waking up?"

"You'd think so, wouldn't you!" The scientific turtle was practically panicking at this point, especially since Leo's point was very valid.

Before an argument could break out, the door to the tunnel slammed as April entered the lair. "Guys? Where are you?"

"In the lab, April!" Donatello called back. There were the sounds of running footsteps before the redhead appeared in the doorway, breathing heavily. The purple-clad turtle's face was washed with relief.

"I got here as fast as I could. What happened?" Her eyes widened in horror as she saw Mikey lying so still on the cot.

"We aren't sure." Donatello quickly recapped everything.

"And turning it off didn't help?"

"No, that's the first thing I did."

"And you think Karai had something to do with this?"

"I'd say that there's a ninety-nine point seven percent chance that she did. Think we could hack her and find out what exactly is going on?"

"We can try." April's voice was drenched in uncertainty.

While their brother and friend were talking, Leonardo and Raphael were stealing looks at each other, each thinking that this was exactly what their enemy had threatened to do. With a quick nod of his head towards the door, the eldest turtle motioned for his brother to step out with him for a moment. Unnoticed by the rest of the family as April and Donatello sat down at the computer, pulling up a system of complex matrixes and wave-graphs, the two oldest turtles stepped out of the lab.

"Damn!"

"It wasn't your fault, Raph."

"Don't try to go an' sugarcoat it for me, Leo! Mike's in a coma because of me!"

"If she had had a chance, Karai would have stuck it on me. You know that."

"I dunno…she looked like she was ready ta skewer you."

"In that case, you saved my life yet again, so thanks."

"Yeah, well…" Raphael became quiet as he looked back towards the laboratory door. "We've got to do somethin'."

"I know, Raph, but what? We don't even know what's going on with him!" the katana-wielding turtle whispered back. "Maybe we should wait—"

"I'm the one who got Mike into this an' I'm gonna make sure that he's alright if it means that I've gotta kick that bitch's butt myself."

"Look, I'm all for going after Karai for this, but can we _please_ wait until Donnie finds out exactly what's going on with him?"

"Fine," Raphael muttered, obviously displeased though he could see his brother's reasoning. "But I ain't waitin' any longer than I have to."

"Agreed."

"Guys!" Donatello called excitedly. "We're in! We found it!"

Raphael and Leonardo ran back into the laboratory. "Already?" "What is it?"

"Chaplain's security measures were much easier to crack that Stockman's," April explained excitedly. "We were in within a matter of moments."

"Well actually," Donatello corrected sheepishly, "I hit the wrong button, but it ended up getting us in."

"Then I guess it's a good thing you hit the wrong button." Leonardo felt a small grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. "What did you find?"

"Apparently before Mike was brought into the cell with you back in December, Leo, the Foot implanted him with this." Donatello pointed to the screen while everyone leaned in closer to see. "According to this document Chaplain wrote about his research, they put it into his neck, which would explain an incision-like wound that I found there when I first examined you all. This device amplifies and increases production of dopamine, noradrenalin, and serotonin, which are the main hormones known to effect and even cause emotions. In addition, it somehow manages—it doesn't explain how here—to influence the limbic system of the brain which is essentially the control center for emotions."

"Which means that Karai is behind Mike's mood swings?"

"Right, Leo. But the bad news is that this also says that the device only would work at full capacity when exposed to a certain audio-frequency. Such an increase of hormones would serve to essentially overload a person's—or turtle's—brain. A prolonged exposure would, well," Donatello sighed and looked sadly at his family, "it could prove fatal."

"Can you reverse it or remove it?"

"Reverse it, maybe. But to remove it, it would have to be shut off first or the process could kill him. Even so, such an operation without someone skilled in this field and without the proper equipment could either kill him or maim him for life."

"How long will it take for you to shut it off?"

"None of the research says exactly how to turn it off, other than this other thing that Chaplain built as a precaution." Donatello pointed at the screen. "It looks like it emits another frequency, but I can't find what frequency it is. There aren't even any schematics for it or anything."

"Could you find out on your own, my son?" Master Splinter laid his hand on Donatello's shoulder.

"It will take time." The scientific turtle's shoulders slumped.

"I'll help," April volunteered.

"Thank you, Miss O'Neil. We are indeed in your debt."

"Don't even think about it. That's what family's for." She smiled.

"I'm going to need you guys to all leave so that April and I can work in peace," Donatello requested. "The faster we can find this frequency, the faster that Mikey can get better." _And the faster that I can make sure he lives_, he added silently.

"You sure?"

"Yes, Raph. You and Leo would just get in the way, no offense, and the frequencies could really hurt your ears," he nodded to Splinter, "and that would distract us, Master. It's better if you are out of range."

"Good luck, Don," Leonardo tried to give his second youngest brother a comforting smile as he allowed Splinter and Raphael to step out before him. He really hoped that the smile showed more confidence than he felt. As Donatello and April began grabbing various items from shelves and drawers, the eldest turtle hurried after his sensei and brother.

Once they were sure that Master Splinter was in his room, Raphael and Leonardo headed towards the lair door, hoping that everyone else was too busy to notice them.

"So, we just gonna let Don do his thing or what?"

"You know as well as I do what we need to do. I seriously doubt that Mike has enough time. Don's a genius, but still…"

Raphael punched his fist. "It ain't often that we're on the same page, 'specially about sneakin' out."

"Let's call it a temporary suspension of the rules for the greater good and anyway, we're going out in a pair like Sensei wanted. Now," Leonardo smiled grimly, "we need to pay the good doctor a house call."

_

* * *

_

Not to bad of a cliffhanger that time, right? No need to come after me with sharp, shiny objects, right? Anyway, please review! I love knowing what you think! Flames will be used to encourage me to study for my upcoming finals!


	7. Chapter 6

_A/N: Thanks, everyone, for your reviews! Well, sorry for the delay this week. My studying for finals turned into writing an English paper, preparing (and giving) a presentation on Linguistics, and taking two other tests. Anyway, enjoy!_

**Disclaimer: I own nothing**

--

Karai looked down from her e-mails as the orange button on her intercom began to flash. With a roll of her eyes, she pressed the button, hoping that Chaplain didn't want to 'just talk' again. Though she felt flattered by his advances, she really didn't have time or energy to deal with him today.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Um, Mistress Karai, we may have a slight problem with your contingency plan."

"What sort of problem?"

"Well…" Chaplain cleared his throat nervously. "Recent computer simulations of the Emohancer that we implanted in Michelangelo are showing some strange reactions."

"So?" Karai was growing impatient. _Just get to the point already!_

"The simulations are showing that before the subject completely succumbs to the mental overload, there is a high probability that he will act violently towards whatever person or thing that recently caused him aggravation."

"And why does that concern me?" Karai turned her eyes back to her e-mails.

"Well, it could mean that he comes _here_. After all, you did just send his brothers back with some pretty serious injuries."

This got the warrior princess's attention. "What is the likelihood that this will happen?" She could hear some tapping on the other end of the line.

"About eighty three percent chance. It's not a guarantee that the device will make him come here, but the probability is pretty high."

"You have the device that can disable the Emohancer, correct?"

"Yes."

"Then bring it to me, just in case that Michelangelo should come."

"Okay. I'll be there in just a couple of moments." There were sounds like a drawer was being flung open and various things were being rattled.

Karai smiled to herself. "Also, it would not surprise me if a raid is made on your laboratory soon, so you might want to stay away from it for the rest of the day."

"But who'd come _here_?"

Karai rolled her eyes. "I could think of three turtles that would do anything to save their brother's life."

"What about that potion thingy that I made for you for Leonardo?"

"I have had much experience with such potions from when I lived in Japan. They do not last long. I would say that if you stayed, you would be facing enemies that are angry and annoyed." A smirk tugged at Karai's lips as she imagined the look on Leonardo's face when she had thrown the powder at him. "Do you really believe that you would like to encounter them like that? Plus, bringing the device here will frustrate their plans further."

"Um, okay. Could I, maybe um…well…"

"Just spit it out, Chaplain."

Chaplain was obviously very nervous. "Could I maybe, um, stay with you then?"

Karai laughed. "We'll see. Now get up here."

* * *

Splinter watched from his slightly open door as Leonardo and Raphael silently ran out of the lair. The actions of his two eldest sons did not surprise him in the slightest. He just wished that they wouldn't feel as though they had to sneak past him to do what they felt was right.

"Stay safe, my sons," he whispered. "Watch out for each other."

With a small sigh, he turned back to his room, settling himself in the middle of several sticks of fragrant sandalwood incense. There was much that he had to think about.

* * *

"We need to know what wavelength it was that triggered the device in his neck," Donatello explained to April as he put the remains of the speaker into one of his devices. "This is an electrograph. It can take the electrical signals that the speaker would normally change into sound and record it as a wave."

"How do you think that will help?"

"I'm not sure at the moment, but any information that we can glean may prove useful."

April said nothing as the machine began to buzz.

"Would you mind watching Mikey's vitals while this is going? They should be pretty close to those of humans."

"I know, Don. I've bandaged up most of you before."

"Yeah, well…" Donatello gave her a sheepish look.

"Hey, don't worry about it," April assured him. "You've got a lot on your mind right now." She placed a finger on Michelangelo's pulse and carefully took note of the rate.

Donatello let out a slight groan of frustration.

"What's up?"

"This is going to take longer than I expected and I really have no other idea what to do!"

"You'll think of something, Don."

"But what if I can't? What if I can't save him and he dies?" A small tear threatened to spill out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh, Donnie…" April left Michelangelo's side and gave Donatello a gentle hug. Giving the turtle a soft, sad smile, she gently wiped the salty droplet from her friend's eye. "You will find a way and even if the worst happens, it will not be your fault. You've done more than anyone else ever could."

"But what if—"

"What if the ground and trees were made of cheese and all the oceans ink and all the sky was apple pie, what would we have to drink?"

Donatello smiled slightly. "You're right. Back to work it is."

* * *

"It's just a simple in-and-out grab-n-go. Probably better if we don't draw any attention to ourselves. Raph, are you listening?"

"Yeah, Leo. I know the drill." Raphael walked back towards his brother from where he had been peering over the edge of the roof to make sure that his Shell Cycle was safely hidden. "Jus' makin' sure that we can get back fast."

The two brothers were crouched on a rooftop, staring at Foot Headquarters.

"If we go in there," Leonardo pointed at a ledge halfway up, "we can get in undetected. After that, the laboratory is four stories up."

Raphael looked at him as though his shell had just turned bright pink. "Yer sayin' that the best way to get in is through someplace that is probably the one part that has the most goons?"

"Just follow my lead and try to keep up." Leonardo leapt off of the edge of the roof.

Raphael jumped after him. "I hope you know what yer doin', bro."

* * *

Donatello looked at his computer screen again, once again trying to find some sort of clue about this device that was slowly killing his baby brother. The electrograph had not provided him any useful information, so he had retrieved a speaker of his own, hooked it up to his computer, and was preparing to enter in the various wavelengths that could possibly affect the device. April sat on the edge of Michelangelo's cot, wiping away the beads of sweat that were forming.

"He's getting worse."

"Then I've got to hurry." Donatello minimized Chaplain's specs, revealing up his sound program. He typed in an algebraic formula and a low hum filled the room. Michelangelo didn't move. "Ape, would you mind grabbing the electro-pulse reader off that shelf and placing it on Mikey's neck?"

"Sure." April grabbed the gizmo from where Donatello had indicated. She turned it on and held it softly against the unconscious turtle's neck. In doing so, her index finger rested lightly on Michelangelo's carotid artery.

"Just keep watching the readout. If anything changes, let me know immediately."

"The pulse is still steady. Try a different wavelength."

Donatello adjusted one of the numbers in the formula. "How about now?"

"Same." Even though she couldn't hear the sound, April could feel the vibrations pulsing through her body. All of a sudden, though it was barely perceptible, April noticed a change in the movement of the unconscious turtle's neck. Quickly removing the electro-pulse reader, she felt Michelangelo's pulse again. "Don, the pulse is much higher than before!"

"Good, that means that we're getting close to the right frequency! Take it off when it reaches seven clicks per second and tell me. Then—"

"No, I mean that Mike's pulse is quicker," the redhead interrupted, her voice cracking slightly in worry as she looked down at the turtle's chest. It was rising and falling rapidly. "His breathing is speeding up as well."

Donatello instantly stopped the program and practically leapt across the room. "Mikey, are you okay bro?" A quick touch told him that Michelangelo's temperature was rising quickly as well.

April grabbed a flashlight from the workbench, shining the, the light directly into Mikey's eye with one hand while holding open the eyelids with the other. "His pupils are dilated."

"This shouldn't be happening!" Donatello could not keep the panic from his voice. "Come on, Mikey. Don't die on me!"

Suddenly, Michelangelo's eyes snapped open. Before either April or Don could react, he shoved them away and leapt off of the cot, heading towards the door.

"Mikey! Wait!" Donatello scrambled after his younger brother.

Michelangelo turned around for a moment, glaring at the purple-clad turtle. Don's step faltered.

"Mikey? What are you doing? What's happening?"

The youngest turtle didn't answer with anything more than continuing his glare. He turned his gaze onto April and it was all she could do to not gasp in horror. Michelangelo's face was contorted into a look of intense rage and hate; his eyes burned red. Abruptly, he spun around and ran out of the laboratory.

* * *

_Please review!! Flames will be used to help me step lightly during my TaeKwondo test! _:-)


	8. Chapter 7

_A/N: Thanks everyone! You're reviews make me very happy. Just a heads up, this may be the last chapter for a couple of weeks. I'm going to be out of town without internet access until the beginning of June. Don't worry, I'll keep writing so that you can have another chapter when I get back._

_Thanks, Moogs, for betaing this! You're awesome!!_

**Disclaimer: I do not have the privilege of owning the turtles or their associates.**

* * *

Karai looked at the security video feed that she had linked to her computer. "Nothing yet, but just wait."

"So, are we just going to sit here and wait for the turtles to show up Mistress?" Chaplain was looking slightly uncomfortable with sitting still in Karai's office. One of his hands twitched nervously.

"Yes, we shall sit and wait." She looked at him with slight annoyance as he opened his mouth to object. Chaplain's mouth closed with a snap. Karai sighed, barely able to keep from rolling her eyes. "We must conserve our energies for the fight. They will be anxious and stressed, making them weaker, more tired. We, on the other hand, shall be well rested and strong."

Chaplain nodded his head in understanding. "What about that video?"

"The one of Leonardo? It is scheduled to be given to the stations in tomorrow morning so that it can be news by tomorrow afternoon. Plus, it would seem very strange for a tape taken this morning to surface immediately. We do not want to draw attention to ourselves. Instead, we shall say that an anonymous videographer left the tape in our inbox so that we found it tomorrow morning."

Chaplain nodded again, and then his face fell into deep concentration. "Why do you suppose that they came out during the day anyways? I mean, don't they, like, come out at night normally?"

Karai shrugged. "I really don't care. However, it is dark enough now that they will feel covered by the shadows and can dare to come here." She looked back at her computer screen. _Where are you, Leonardo?_

* * *

Raphael was following right behind his oldest brother as they snuck onto the terrace right behind a Foot ninja. Slightly nervous, Raphael glanced at the unaware enemy. _I can't believe Leo's doin' this! If we get caught…_ his thought trailed off.

In front of him, Leonardo motioned silently towards a window. With a slight touch of his finger, the blue-clad turtle pushed the window inwards. Raphael tensed, waiting for an alarm to sound. Then he realized that the glass had separated from the casing. Leonardo raised a finger to his lip, forestalling any sounds as he shot a nervous glance towards the Foot soldier. Motioning for Raphael to follow him, the sword-wielding turtle slipped in. The moment that both turtles were inside, Leonardo pressed the window closed. It looked like nothing had even touched it.

"How'd you—"

"Last time I was here willingly, figured we may need a way in," Leonardo explained in a brief whisper. "Come on, this room is not safe."

"Since when's it been 'safe' inside o' Foot HQ?" Raphael muttered under his breath.

* * *

"Mikey, wait! Someone stop him! Guys!"

Master Splinter came running out of his room as his youngest son sprinted towards the lair door, closely followed by Donatello and April. Astonishment was evident on the rat's face. "What is going on?"

"Stop him, Master! Before he gets out!" Donatello took fleeting look around, hoping to catch sight of his brothers coming to help.

Without waiting for an explanation, the old rat leapt in front of the main entrance, holding his walking stick up defensively as Michelangelo stopped short in front of him. Splinter's eyes widened in alarm as he saw the murderous look in the eyes of the normally happy-go-lucky turtle. "Shh, my son. You are safe here. Calm yourself."

In response to his sensei's calming words and tone, Michelangelo stepped backwards slightly as though he was hesitating to do something. Donatello, panting slightly, came running up behind him. "Are you okay, Mikey?"

Michelangelo looked over his shoulder at his brother, his eyes momentarily filled with uncertainty. The look on his face hardened as he turned back towards the lair door. All of a sudden, he lunged forwards, grabbed Master Splinter's robes and tossed the rat back into Donatello. Master and pupil fell backwards. Even as his family members were hitting the ground next to each other, Michelangelo stepped forwards, kicking April squarely in the chest. She was unable to block his attack and fell hard on the brick floor, tears welling in her eyes. Unfazed, the orange-clad turtle turned and ran out of the lair door.

Donatello bolted back up and ran to the doorway, trying to see where his baby brother had gone, but there were no signs of Michelangelo. The turtle let out an exasperated sigh as he turned back and helped Splinter up. "Are you alright, Master?"

"Yes, I am fine, though worried. Ms. O'Neil may assistance, though."

April grimaced slightly as Donatello helped her up. "Just a little bruised. Nothing's broken," she said, forestalling his concerned questioning. Donatello smiled slightly in relief.

"Where are Leo and Raph and why weren't they helping?" the purple-clad turtle demanded. "We need to go after Mikey so he doesn't hurt himself or anyone else."

"Your brothers have gone to retrieve the device that our enemies created that could heal Michelangelo," Master Splinter explained.

"And they didn't tell me?" Donatello was indignant. "What the shell were they thinking?"

"They did not tell me that they were going either, my son," the rat gave him a small smile. "They were afraid that I might forbid it, yet were terrified of what might happen should they not retrieve it."

"They should have at least told _me_! Now we've got to go find Mikey and they can't even help us and Mikey could be anywhere!"

"Yet they did not. Figuring that you would be working to find the cure on your own, they did not wish to disturb you for fear that they would distract you from success. Now is not the time for anger, my son." Splinter lay a hand on his irate son's arm. "Come, let us find Michelangelo and trust that Leonardo and Raphael can take care of themselves."

"He did have his Shell Cell, right?"

"Yes, I'll get my tracker." Donatello's anger melted into resigned worry. "You sure you're alright, April?"

"I'm fine, Don. Just a little winded. Let's go find Mikey."

* * *

Two Foot soldiers walked in opposite directions, up and down a long, brightly lit hallway, stopping at the end and then turning a walking to the other end. Neither of them noticed the green and red head that was sharply pulled back into the shadows just inside a doorway along the wall.

"That's just great!" Raphael gripped under his breath. "Guards, tons of light, an' cameras."

"Not to mention that the doorway in is all the way at the end," Leonardo added. "We'll have to go around."

"How 'xactly are we gonna do that? Donnie ain't here and the two of us can't just pull up a map or nothin'."

"Would you rather go through the hall?" Leo's whisper sounded a bit annoyed.

"I'd 'rather' be movin' instead of sittin here on my butt while Mike could be dyin'."

"Just give me a moment to think."

"Then think faster!"

"I'm trying, damnit!"

Raphael was startled by his brother's outburst. It usually took a lot for Fearless Leader to swear, especially at his normal voice level when he was trying to be quiet. As it was, Raph was fairly certain that he heard Leo swear again in Japanese, though this time under his breath.

Suddenly, Leonardo looked up in alarm. "They heard me. Get ready."

Moments later, Raphael heard the almost silent footfalls just before the two enemy ninja guards sped into the room. The brothers stayed right next to the door, hidden a bit by the shadows. The two Foot spun back around, seeing the intruders. Weapons on both sides were instantly drawn. As one of the Foot reached for his com-link, Raphael surged forwards and knocked the communicator away.

"No way, bonehead."

A quick punch sent the ninja crumbling to the floor. Leonardo had also knocked out his opponent who crumpled on top of the other Foot.

"Well, that takes care of the guards, but there're still the cameras to deal with."

"You have a plan?"

"Actually," Leonardo looked down at the small heap that their enemies made in the middle of the floor, "Yes."

* * *

_So please leave me a review! Flames will be used to keep away mosquitos!_


	9. Chapter 8

_A/N: Hello! I managed to get another chapter finished before I leave. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and a HUGE thanks to Moogs for betaing this for me. I'm sorry to say, but the next chapter will not be up before June 7th at the absolute earliest, so please be patient. _:-)

**Disclaimer: My turtle luck is running true to form: I still own nothing more than the plot.**

_

* * *

_

You know they'll hate you now.

"W-who? What-what are you?" Michelangelo's eyes darted around the dimness, looking for the source of the voice as he ran through the sewers, paying no heed to his direction. Lukewarm sludge squished up against the side of his foot as he splashed through a shallow puddle. "How are you inside my head?"

_I am one of your voices. We have spoken before._

"My what?" The turtle felt heat pressing on the back of his eyes and a slight throbbing in his head.

_Your voices, your spirit. Even though you've kept me out since December, I feel it's time we know each other better._

"Since December? You're what made me have those blackouts?"

_That's not really important right now._

Mikey's eyeridges shot up. "It's not impor—"

_I MEAN,_ the voice interrupted, _that there is more for you to think of than just that, especially the fact that your family hates you now. They loathe you for what you've done._

"No! That would never happen! They're my family; they love me!"

_Like it or not, they'll hate you as you hated them when they got in your way._

"I didn't hate them, _you_ hated them!"

_Sorry, little one, but I _am_ you. If I do something, that is only because you are doing it._

"T-that's not true!" Tears were flowing rapidly from azure eyes.

_Ah, but it is. They've always held you back, treated you like a little kid. You have every _right_ to hate them. After all, isn't hate the reason that you're running away?_

"I'm not running away! I just don't want you to hurt them again."

_And that is why you attacked your own Sensei? That is why you hit your best friend when you knew she couldn't defend herself?_

"B-but I didn't do that!"

_Yes you did. Here's proof._ Vibrant images flashed through Michelangelo's mind, complete with every possible detail. His feet stopped on their own accord as he watched his own actions in horror. _You see? You did this to them and they'll hate you._

The orange-clad turtle dropped to his knees. "No," he breathed. "No…" The images faded from his mind, lingering longest on the sight of the hurt in Donatello's eyes. "I hate you," he muttered.

_What was that?_

"You heard me! I HATE YOU!"

_Very good. We're finally making some progress! Doesn't hate feel strong? Trust me and I will show you how to earn back your family's love._

"Who are you?" Michelangelo suddenly found himself suspicious.

_Why, I am you of course. I am your anger, your hate. I am strength and I am power. Embrace me and you shall be unstoppable. _

"I don't wanna be unstoppable! I could hurt someone like that!"

_I think that you do want to be unstoppable, or at least unstoppable when we go to slay Karai._

"What?"

_You know we must. She is the one who awakened me inside of you. She is the one who hurt Leo so badly. As you sit here feeling sorry for yourself, she could be making a new plan to destroy all of your brothers. Destroy her and not only will your family and friends be safe, but you will have their eternal gratitude. _

"I can't destroy Karai," the turtle protested. "Not even Leo could do that, and we've tried."

_You haven't tried my way. Embrace me and you will be sure to win._

"Are you sure?" Michelangelo was becoming tired of this argument.

_Absolutely. I will make you stronger, faster. _The voice became sweeter, softer. _All you have to do is accept me. _

"Really? I'm not sure…"

_You can let me go at any time. You can stop the moment you want to._

"Well, maybe…" Michelangelo's voice trailed off as the blood-rage returned to his eyes.

* * *

"How will we stop him if he's still like before?" April, Donatello and Master Splinter were running through the sewers. The turtle was in the lead with his tracking device.

"I don't know, April, but it looks like he's staying in one place right now. I hope he's alright."

The girl nodded in agreement with her friend's sentiment. If the youngest turtle was holding still, it could mean that he was unconscious or worse.

* * *

The sound of familiar voices caused Michelangelo to whip around. _They are coming to stop you. They are coming to take you back with them to punish you. They must be tracking the Shell Cell, so drop it so they can't follow you! _

There was a small splash as the device fell into the sewage. _Now let's go before they get here!_

"But maybe they can help—" Blue eyes shone momentarily.

Red eyes returned in a flash. _No, they will only try to stop you_.

Blue eyes. "They're my family. We always do this together."

Red eyes. _You want to protect your family, don't you? Taking them with us would only put them in danger._

"I guess you're right…" The brilliant blue began to fade.

_Of course I'm right_, red eyes now shone in the darkness. _We must hurry._

Michelangelo faintly felt his hand grasp the cold metal of the ladder leading to the manhole cover above. He didn't even notice when he began to climb.

* * *

Only minutes later, the three searchers ran into the tunnel that the youngest had been in.

"The tracker shows he's in here," Donatello whispered. Cautiously, he took a step forwards. To his dismay, the tracker indicated that his brother's phone was in the sewage itself. Withdrawing his bo, he walked up to the spot and felt around the sludge with the end of his weapon. "He's not here. Just his Shell Cell is. We lost him and there's no other way to track him!"

"Don't worry, Don. We'll find him." April laid a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"But he could be out there anywhere and just getting more unstable! He doesn't have much time left before that device overwhelms him!"

"So we had better get looking."

Donatello smiled at April's optimism. "I guess you're right, but I don't even know where to start."

"Then what do we do?"

Donatello shrugged. "Any ideas, Master?"

With a sigh, the rat closed his eyes. "I can sense that while here, Michelangelo's spirit almost reached its breaking point. But as to where he has gone, I do not know."

Donatello and April exchanged a glance. "This can't be good."

* * *

Two heavy-set Foot soldiers came running into Chaplain's laboratory, surprising the ten that were standing guard inside.

"Quickly!" one shouted. "The turtles have attacked down in the library. Mistress Karai has ordered that everyone gets there as fast as they can!"

"Why didn't she just summon us on our com-links?" The tallest of the guards stepped forwards, his voice sounded suspicious.

"They managed to jam everything. The com-links are not working and they disabled all of the alarms and everything. Look, would you rather sit here and argue or will you follow direct orders from the Mistress herself?"

"Fine," the tallest muttered under his breath. "Come on, everyone," he pointed towards the door. "You all heard the orders. Let's go. Oh," he turned back to the newcomers, "Stay here and guard this room. It's not to be unguarded for a single minute."

"But—"

"That's an order."

"Yes sir." Both of the newcomers bowed. Within a couple of seconds, they were the only ones left in the room. After glancing around for cameras, one reached up and pulled off the black mask.

"I can't believe that actually worked, Leo."

"I didn't believe Don's pigeon puppet would work either, but it did." The blue-clad turtle grinned as he shed the enemy-ninja garb.

Raphael laughed for a moment before becoming sober again. "Speakin' of Don, let's find that thing and get out o' here. I don't like bein' here."

Leonardo walked over to Chaplain's large desk. "I can't say I like being here either. I'm rather surprised that no alarms have gone off or anything."

"Hey, don't jinx us."

The blue-clad turtle carefully pulled open a drawer in the desk. "It looks like the stuff in here has been tossed around like something was being pulled from underneath it." He lifted up one of the pieces of paper. "I think the device was here, but they moved it. This looks like some research that Chaplain was doing on it."

Raphael looked up from the file that he was leafing through. "It moved? So all this comin' in here was a total waste o' time?"

"I'm not sure. Don might be able to use this research, even though I can't make heads or tails of it."

Raphael grunted in dissatisfaction. "But it'd still take hours before Don could do somethin' with it. We need the actual thingamabob."

"Agreed." A small, flashing light suddenly caught Leonardo's eye. "Hmm…I wonder what messages Chaplain had on here. Maybe there's a clue." His green finger pressed the 'play' button and a conversation between Karai and Chaplain began to pipe out of the machine. The two turtles exchanged a worried look.

"Mike could come here?"

"And Karai has it with her."

"And they're expecting us."

"Raph, this is really bad."

"Gee, duh Leo."

* * *

"You recorded our conversation?" Karai raised her eyebrow at Chaplain as she looked momentarily away from the video feed.

"Well, um, it seemed like a good idea at the time. I mean, I always tape it when you are telling me what you want so that I can make sure it's exactly perfect for you, especially since you're just so perfect."

Karai rolled her eyes and turned back to her computer. "Regardless, your recording has shown itself to be useful for now."

"Should we get ready for them to get here?"

Karai gave the eager scientist a condescending smile. "We are already prepared for them. Even as we speak, the noose tightens around their necks. Neither of them shall leave here alive."

* * *

_Yes, a cliffie! BWAHAHAHAHA!! Please don't hurt me! Instead, why don't you take all of that aggressive energy and leave me a review instead? Flames will be used for fuel for my car!_


	10. Chapter 9

__

A/N: Hi, everyone! I'm back and yes, I did have a ton of fun on vacation. Thanks, everyone who reviewed! I really love reading your responses.

_HUGE thanks to Moogs for betaing this for me!_

:-)

**Disclaimer: If I owned them, there would be new episodes right now and not just re-runs**

* * *

With a small, smug smile, Karai watched on her monitor as Leonardo and Raphael debated over what to do. Giving Chaplain a look to silence him, she pulled out a communicator from her belt. "It's time. Prepare yourselves and gather around the entrance to Chaplain's laboratory."

"Yes, mistress," a voice on the other end replied.

Quite happy with herself, Karai replaced the device in her belt and turned her smile onto the scientist. "As I said, we are already prepared for the turtles, no matter what trickery they may attempt."

"But what if they take the air ducts?" Chaplain interjected.

"Then they shall find that the ducts will collapse around them. Might I remind you that no longer do we have the easily penetrable metal shafts. The only other way out of that room is by coming through the door and," Karai pointed at the video feed from the hallway right outside of the laboratory, "this is what they shall face. Their defeat is certain."

The image on her computer screen showed scores of Foot ninja, many of whom were carrying white, leaf blower-like machines on their backs, filling up the hall.

* * *

Leonardo hopped down off of his brother's shoulders. "Air vent's out. If we tried it, it'd be like that time when you tricked Mikey into thinking that he could walk on top of that sheet you draped between two chairs."

Raphael groaned and rubbed one of his shoulders. "Now what?"

"We have to use the door, I guess. But now that Karai's expecting us…" he sighed. "We're going to have one shell of a fight if we even want to just get out of here."

"We can't and ain't gonna just get outa here," Raphael insisted. "Mike's dyin' an' if we don't get that thing from Karai, he ain't gonna make it."

"I know, Raph. It's just that we aren't going to be much good for Mike if we're dead."

Raphael started to pace around the room, knocking equipment off of the shelves. "Sure as shell we can't jus' stay here and do nothin'!"

"I know, Raph. Just be quiet a sec and I'll check to see if the hall's clear."

Leonardo hurried to the laboratory's door and carefully eased it open. He peeked through the crack and then yanked his head back sharply. "_Unko!_ The entire hall's filled with Foot. We're completely surrounded!"

"Then we're jus' gonna have to fight 'em all the way up 'til we get ta Karai." The red-clad turtle whipped out his sai and twirled them around.

"Just give me a moment to think—"

"Every moment we waste in this hell-hole is a moment that Mike don't have!"

"Do you think I don't know that?"

"Right now you're sure actin' like it. Know what? Screw you, I'm going out there an' I'm gonna get that thing from Karai even if it kills me!" The hot-headed turtle stomped towards the door.

"Raph, wait!"

"I'm through waitin', Leo!"

"Raphael!" Leonardo stepped directly in front of his bother and placed his hands on Raphael's shoulders. "I'm going with you but if something happens to me, I need you to promise you'll get away from here as fast as—"

"I'm not gonna just run away, Leo! Mikey needs that device and I'm not gonna let anythin' happen to you either!"

"But if it _does_," Leonardo insisted, "I need you to promise that you'll get away and protect Don and Splinter and get them far away from here. Karai will go after them and do _not_ intend to let my family die."

"What're you talkin' about? We'll get that thing an' scram, then get back to Don and Mike before they know we're gone. An' if Karai tries anything…" Raphael pulled away from his brother and made a graphic gesture with his sai.

"There's an entire squad outside of the door along with all of the Elite and Karai is going to be well prepared and well defended. I need you to promise, Raph!"

"An' what are you gonna do, O Fearless, that makes you so sure that we can't win?" the red-clad turtle growled and headed towards the door once again.

"I'm praying that we win, Raph, but I'm going to make sure that you get away."

"No way am I leavin' you here!" Raphael spun around, just missing the look of intense sorrow that flickered momentarily in his brother's hazel eyes. "You _are_ gonna get out an' be just fine, like it or not, even if I've gotta carry you."

"If I fall, you'll be the only one who can take care of the others." Leonardo's face was etched with tired resolve. "You will have to be their strength when they have none."

Raphael suddenly felt a sinking in his stomach as he heard the strange, almost despairing, tone that his only older brother was discussing his death in. It was almost as if Leo was certain that he wasn't going to make it out. Raphael promised himself that he was going to make sure that wouldn't happen. "That'll be _only_ if there ain't no other choice 'cause I don't intend to lose _any_ of my bros tonight."

The blue-clad turtle gave him a small grin. "Let's hope you don't have to." Drawing one of his katana, the turtle placed his hand on the doorknob. "You ready?"

Raphael twirled his sai and then gripped them tightly in answer. Turning the handle sharply, Leonardo flung the door open, revealing the legion of Foot waiting for them.

* * *

Donatello glanced around the small side-tunnel where they had found Michelangelo's Shell Cell. His mind was racing as he tried to figure out a way to track his missing brother.

"He didn't pass us going back out and we didn't hear him nearby either. Is there another tunnel connected to this one?"

"No," the turtle shook his head, "this is just an access point for maintenance." He sighed in frustration. Suddenly, an idea hit him and he slapped his forehead. "Duh! He went up the service ladder."

April squinted her eyes as she peered around in the dimness. Scarcely any light managed to trickle in from above, making the shadows even deeper in this part of the sewers. "I don't even see a ladder or anything. Are you sure?"

She jumped when Master Splinter, who up to that point had been standing perfectly still and silent off to the side of the tunnel, answered her. "I am certain. At first, I was unable to sense anything of Michelangelo here, but now I have caught his scent. There," he pointed. "Michelangelo's path is there."

Donatello hurried to where his father had pointed, easily finding the service ladder. He set a hand on one of the rungs. It was still warm. "Come on!"

April and Splinter quickly followed the turtle up and through a manhole into an alley. Donatello looked around, hoping to find some trace of – or better, actually find – his brother, but Michelangelo had left no trace of his passage. Donatello turned back around and helped Splinter up the last few rungs. "Can you still smell him, Sensei?"

The old rat closed his eyes and sniffed the air for a few moments before his shoulders slouched forwards. "I smell the rubber of tires, the exhaust of vehicles, and the dust of the ground, but Michelangelo's scent has dissipated. Even his spirit is becoming fainter. It is becoming difficult to sense."

Pulling out his phone, Donatello snapped it open and held it up to his ear. "Raph and Leo have got to help. Even if we get Casey to help, we need them. There's no way that we could find Mikey by ourselves. We need them, now more than ever."

* * *

As Leonardo parried a swipe from a katana and ducked under the swing of another, he felt a series of vibrations coming from his belt. He growled as he recognized the emergency signal. _I really don't have time for this!_ Even so, his heart filled with dread as he imagined why the cell was coming through as 'emergency'. Rolling out of the way of a blow from the axe of one of the Elite, he grabbed the headset off of the top of the phone and slapped in on. "What is it?"

"Mikey's gone!" came Donatello's panicky reply.

"What?!" The blue-clad turtle almost didn't move out of the way as the axe again tried to remove his head from his shoulders.

"Are you talkin' on the friggin' phone?" Raphael exclaimed from the other side of the room. Like his brother, he was completely surrounded by Foot, literally fighting for his life.

"Mike just leapt up and ran and we can't find him!" It sounded as though Donatello's voice was about to break.

"Raph, Mike!" Leonardo called across the room as he finally knocked the axe out of the Elite's hand and then sent the weapon's former wielder flying backwards into several other Foot.

"Aw, crud! He's doing it!" Raphael blocked a punch with one hand, pulling the puncher forwards and off balance, sending the Foot crashing into the wall.

* * *

"Leo what's going on?" Donatello worriedly looked up at his father and friend as he heard the sound of fighting in the background.

"Not the best time for chatting right now." Leonardo's voice was tense. The scientific turtle heard his brother inhale sharply.

"What? What is it? Are you okay?"

A loud _whoosh_ caused the turtle to jerk the phone away from his ear. Static began to pour from the earpiece.

"Leo? Leo!?" Donatello screamed into the phone, ignoring the looks of confused worry on Splinter and April's faces.

"Don…Mike…here…stop…" Leonardo's voice suddenly came through in terrifying clarity. "Raph! Run! Go!"

There was the sound of the headset being flung across a floor followed by silence.

* * *

**Glossary**

_Unko -_ Japanese for 'shit'

* * *

_So, there you have it! Another cliffie! (insert evil laugh track here) Please review and flames will be used to roast marshmallows!_


	11. Chapter 10

_A/N: Hi, everyone! Man, you are all so sweet with your reviews! Thanks so much! Huge thanks to Moogs for betaing this for me. Just a heads' up, there is blood and a bit of gore in this chapter, so enjoy!_

**Disclaimer: Do not attempt to take a 16 week class in 6 weeks**

* * *

Raphael spun around towards his brother's cry, taking out a Foot in the process, only to see a blue and green head fall out of sight, yelling for him to get out of there. With an anguished roar of rage, he surged forwards, through the thinning ranks of enemies, and towards the dreadful _whooshing_ sound coming from the white packs on the backs of the ninjas that surrounded Leonardo.

Two of the Foot Elite suddenly appeared in front of him in a cloud of smoke.

"Outta my way!"

Raphael adjusted his grip on his sai and charged them. Immediately, he had to duck and roll while blocking strikes from both a spear and a trident. He could see the axe-wielding Elite lying on the floor nearby, but the turtle didn't have time to wonder where the last had gone. Before he could get any closer to Leonardo, the Elite engaged him again.

The reach of his enemies' weapons was making it difficult for Raphael to get in close enough to do any damage, though both of their weapons could easily reach the turtle. For a few moments, Raph was hard pressed to defend himself. The Elite seemed intent on keeping him as far away from Leonardo as possible. Every now and again, a tip of one of their weapons would slip past Raphael's defenses, cutting into his skin. Even so, the turtle managed to press them backward.

Just then, one of the Foot surrounding Leonardo fell backwards and didn't get back up, leaving a momentary gap through which Raphael could see his brother. A long, heavily bleeding cut crossed the blue-clad turtle's plastron and he was using only one of his katana. Just as quickly as Raphael got that glance, another Foot stepped in and blocked his view. There was more loud _whooshing_.

"Leo!" Raphael ducked under a blow from the trident, rolling so that he was now between the two Elites and his brother.At the same time, something in the very back of his mind wondered when the hallway had become so cold.

"Raph, go!" Leonardo's voice sounded strained, as though it hurt to produce.

Raphael cursed under his breath. There were few enough Foot left in the rest of the hall that he could get to a window on the far side and leap out, but he just couldn't leave Leo behind for a certain death.

The Foot Elite took advantage of his momentary distraction to increase the speed and ferocity of their attacks. The turtle quickly found himself being pushed back on the defensive. Raphael blocked and, quite by accident, stabbed his sai into the wooden handle of the trident, pulled with a grunt, and yanked it out of its wielder's hands. Immediately, he lunged back and shoved the trident's butt into the Elite's gut. The Elite fell to the ground and vanished in a puff of smoke.

"I guess it's just you an' me, hat boy." Raphael turned his full attention to the Elite with the spear. He frowned as he realized that his sai were stuck in the wood of the trident and refused to come back out.

Not waiting for his enemy to get his weapons unstuck, the Elite began swinging his spear over his head, releasing sudden downwards blows. Raphael was forced to use the trident like a bo staff to block the onslaught. Even so, he kept being pushed backwards down the hallway, unsuccessfully striking out a few times with the trident end of the staff. As the Elite once again raised his spear over his head for a strike, Raphael grabbed hold of his sai's handles again and held it up to block. The spear tip sliced through the staff, loosening the wood around both of the sai, and allowing Raphael to pull them free.

"Thanks," the turtle sneered before slamming his foot into the surprised Elite's face.

Raphael glanced around quickly, surprised at how far away from his brother he had been driven. He ran back towards the heaviest concentration of Foot, certain that that would be where he would find Leonardo. As he ran forwards, two of the Foot suddenly fell onto their backs, screaming in pain. Their legs had been separated from their feet at the ankles by the blade of a katana.

Their fall revealed Leonardo on his hands and knees, looking more dead than alive.

Just as Raphael arrived, the last Foot Elite appeared in a puff of smoke on top of Leonardo's shell. The eldest turtle collapsed under the sudden weight, his eyes closing as he hit the ground. Raphael halted abruptly as the Elite held his katana up against the fallen turtle's throat.

"Get the shell off of him!"

"Drop your weapons!" The Elite turned a fiery red glare on the standing turtle.

Raphael made no move to comply.

"Drop them or your brother here will have his head drop from his body."

A numb, sinking feeling crept into the hot-headed turtle's heart as he looked down at the limp, bleeding form of his brother. He was suddenly aware of how silent the hall had become. Without a second thought, his sai clanked loudly on the tile floor.

* * *

Karai watched her monitor in satisfaction as Raphael's hands were bound behind his shell. She was unsurprised as a small ringing began to come from her communicator. She was the first to speak.

"Well done, yet how many did we lose?"

"At least one of the Elite as well as twelve Foot soldiers are dead. Over twenty are injured, some very seriously so."

"I see." A flicker of intense grief passed over the ninja princess's face. "You know where to take the turtles. Do so immediately. They will not outlast the night."

"Yes, mistress."

Karai replaced the communicator in her belt. Her shoulders slumped slightly forwards as she turned to Chaplain. "Help me to remember to prepare something for those who died and had families."

"I'll try." Chaplain shifted uncomfortably. "Not to be a broken wheel or anything, but what about the other two turtles?"

"As you have said yourself, Michelangelo is probably on his way here so we will destroy him when he arrives. As for Donatello and the rat, they shall be hunted down like the vermin they are. It should not be too much of a problem. They are almost certain to try to avenge their fallen family members. It is just a matter of time." Karai sighed. "Soon, this war between us shall be over and all of the fallen, including my father, will be avenged."

Chaplain shifted in his chair again. He was not used to this side of his mistress. "And then what?"

Karai smiled slightly—a smile of genuine pleasure. "We will have a new day and will see where it takes us." Her smile faltered and she stood up, sliding the Shredder's gauntlet onto her hand. "Come. We have much to do before the night is over."

* * *

Practically panicked, Donatello shook the Shell Cell but all he could hear was the dial tone.

"What is it, my son?" Master Splinter demanded, having watched the entire interaction with an increasing sense of dread.

"Something happened with Leo and the phone line dropped," Donatello replied, redialing. His face was becoming even grimmer as he received no answer. "I think he and Raph must have found out something about Mikey, but we got cut off before he could tell me."

"How about Raph?" April was biting her lower lip.

"I'll try." Donatello dialed the number, but again received no answer.

* * *

Raphael was forced to ignore the buzzing in his belt as the Foot ninja hustled him and Leonardo down the hallway. He was mostly being pushed, but the Foot were dragging Leonardo's limp form. As they moved along, it seemed like the number of Foot in the group was increasing every minute. It was all Raphael could do to make sure that he was staying as close to his brother as possible. At one point, Raphael felt his arm bump up against his brother's and was shocked at how cold it was. For a brief moment, the red-clad turtle felt panic welling up in his chest as he feared for his brother's life but was relieved as he saw Leonardo shake his head groggily.

"He's waking up!" The Elite exclaimed, seeing the same thing as Raphael. "Keep the two freaks separate as much as possible."

Instantly, Raphael felt at least three pairs of hands yanking him away from Leonardo. He struggled to get back to Leonardo's side and knocked one of the Foot ninja over. However, three more took its place, grabbing tightly to his arms.

Raphael growled. "Get offa me!" He jerked suddenly to the right, managing to slip out of most of the hands' grasps.

"Enough!" the Elite yelled, withdrawing his sword. He strode towards Leonardo and grabbed the turtle's bandana, simultaneously lifting up Leo's head and blindfolding him by his own bandana. "Enough," the Elite repeated, placing his sword against the eldest turtle's throat.

"Don't stop, Raph! Get away if you can!" Leonardo hissed sharply as the blade began to slice through the skin on his neck.

Raphael stopped his struggling. "Sorry, bro."

It was only a matter of minutes before the procession reached the library. All of the bookshelves had been pushed up against the wall, making the room look like an arena. It was made even more ominous by the enormous statue of Oroku Saki in the very center of the room seeming, in the candlelight, to be watching the proceedings with much interest.

The turtles were hustled into the very center of the makeshift arena and what looked like the entire Foot clan filled up the rest of the library, even up on the balcony and on top of the book shelves. Karai, with Chaplain standing behind her, was up on one of the balconies overlooking everything. She raised her hand and all noise stopped.

"Tonight, we have captured two of our most dangerous and hated enemies!"

There was much cheering. Karai waited for it to calm before continuing.

"Tonight, we have won a great victory!"

Again, there was much cheering. Karai held up her hand with a smile, trying to quiet the enthusiasm of her followers.

"And tonight, these two turtles shall die!"

* * *

_So...like it? Hate it? Evil cliffie? Please tell me! Flames will be used to roast marshmallows which will subsequently be used to get me on a sugar high so I'll write something inane! Anyway, to all of you out there that are reading and not reviewing, I know you're there. It doesn't take long to type. (And if you only wanted to say 'like it' or 'hate it' that's fine too!) _:-)


	12. Chapter 11

_A/N: Thanks so much, everyone! Your reviews make me so happy! And now, thanks to you, this fic has passed the 100 reviews mark. You're all totally awesome!_

_HUGE thanks to my beta, Moogs - you're really absolutely wonderful!_

**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Still don't own them.**

* * *

Donatello snapped his Shell Cell shut with a grunt of frustration. He was starting to feel the need to hit something. "Raph's not answering either! Something's wrong!" He started to pace around. "They shouldn't have gone in the first place and now they're in trouble and I still have no idea how to find Mikey or even if he's still alive!"

Master Splinter looked down sadly until his son stopped pacing and stood dejectedly beside him. Even though the sorrow remained in his eyes, the rat tried to comfort the turtle as he placed his hand on Donatello's arm. "Your brothers did what they believed to be the best not only for Michelangelo, but for you as well my son. We must now hold that where there is life, there is hope."

"But Sensei, I don't even know that they're still alive!"

Splinter smiled slightly. "Then we must hope that there is life. Have faith in Leonardo and Raphael."

"I-I just don't want to lose any of my brothers…" Donatello suddenly found that keeping his emotions in check was becoming extremely difficult.

"And I do not wish to lose any of my sons. Come, let us continue our search."

"Master, I don't have a single idea about how to find him. I mean, it's not like he's going to be in all his usual hangouts or anything."

"Actually," April piped up from where she had been watching, momentarily forgotten, "what other frequencies does your tracker pick up, Don?"

"It can pick up anything, but it's not going to do any good without a frequency to track."

"Could it pick up a transionic particle signature?"

"Yes, but—Oh!" Understanding suddenly lit on the turtle's face. He spun around and hugged his friend. "April, you're brilliant!"

"You're welcome," she laughed, "but can I breathe now?"

"Sorry," Donatello stepped back with a blush. He turned his full attention to calibrating his tracker. "Particles like that will still be inside the four of us and in our shells since we were actually inside the Utrom's Transmat beam, but they won't be on any humans after all this time."

"And what exactly does that mean, my son?"

"We can trace Mikey just like the Triceratons tried to trace us during the invasion!" Don fiddled with the tracker for a few more moments. Suddenly, a blip appeared on screen. "I've found him! He's moving fast! This way!"

Donatello started to run, climbing up a nearby fire escape as Master Splinter followed closely behind. April looked up after him, realizing that there was no way that she would be able to keep up.

With a small sigh of amused frustration, she called up after the two mutants, "Go! We're close to my shop so I'm going to get my van in case we need a speedy getaway! Hook the tracer into your phone so I can follow you!"

Donatello paused and turned around. "That'd be great, April." He sounded relieved. "I'm hooking it in now. See you hopefully with Mikey in tow!" With that, both he and Master Splinter disappeared out of sight on the roof.

* * *

Much to Raphael's dismay, Leonardo was pulled away from the center of the library and towards an area directly under Karai. He, on the other hand, was being kept firmly in the center. However, what concerned him even more was that his brother's eyes were closed and an expression of pain was splashed across Leonardo's face. Even worse, the Foot ninja started to drag the blue-clad turtle out of the room and into another corridor. Raphael growled and struggled against his captors.

_**Raph, you okay?**_ A voice shot through the hothead's mind.

"Leo?"

_**Shh, I know you don't like it when I do this, but I'm in your head right now. **_

_Leo, you okay? I mean with that…_ Raphael couldn't bring himself to mention the gash that spread across his brother's plastron.

_**It looks worse than it is,**_ Leonardo tried to reassure him. _**The freeze treatment's pretty much stopped the bleeding. You?**_

_Nothin' I can't handle._

Karai said something, causing the Foot soldiers around them to cheer loudly. Neither of the turtles paid any attention to it, though the hands grasping Raphael's arms loosened their grip.

_**Look, I have a plan to get us out of here.**_

_Then you'd better spill it fast. _

_**They're bringing me up to Karai. When she's taunting me, the guards around you will be distracted. Get to the candles around the statue behind you and throw them at the bookshelves. Don't stop even if they are threatening me. That will set off the smoke alarms, provide a distraction, and summon the authorities here. Not to mention that it should destroy this place since the books are so dry. The Foot won't risk being seen and will retreat. By that time, we'll be gone.**_

_You sure that's gonna work?_

_**Quite frankly? No. But it's all I can come up with right now.**_

Just then, a pair of doors opened behind Karai and Raphael could see several Foot soldiers drag Leonardo out. Raphael immediately began to tug at the ropes binding his arms. In a moment of pure elation, he felt the strands start to give.

Meanwhile, Leonardo was staring evenly into Karai's eyes. She was staring back with a look akin to hatred pointed directly at the eldest turtle. They could both feel the rising tension in the room.

"These shall be your last moments in this life, Leonardo."

The turtle did not respond to her threat.

"Do you know why you are here? Why all of this?" Karai waved her hand around, indicating the room and the audience eager for terrapin blood.

"I am here because _you_ are trying to kill my brother," Leonardo spat. "And I am not going to let you do that."

"Wrong." Karai sneered at her prisoner. "All this is because of something _you_ did. All of this is revenge!"

"Oroku Saki had to be stopped, Karai. He was evil and even you could not fail to see that!"

Karai strode forwards and slapped Leonardo across the face with the back of her hand. "He was my _father!_" she hissed. "I _loved_ him. Yet even so, my revenge upon you is not solely because of his loss. I was prepared that day for him to leave me forever anyway. I was still heartbroken, yet I was prepared for it." A brief sorrow flickered across her face but was quickly replaced by hardness.

Leonardo said nothing but easily caught the flash of emotion. He watched her narrowly, hoping that Raphael was able to carry out his plan.

"No," Karai continued, "this is my own revenge. You have no idea what I suffered because of what those vile Utroms did to me. You have NO IDEA what I suffered those months afterwards. And it was all your fault. I stopped my father from destroying you for your sake yet you would not even speak up for me during the trial. So much for your honor!"

"Karai, I was the one who suggested that they send you back to Earth instead of the intergalactic prison world! They were determined that you would be imprisoned so they agreed to send you back to Earth with the condition that you be handed over to the 'proper authorities.' I held no ill will against you until you destroyed my home and tried to destroy my family!"

Surprise shot into Karai's eyes. She quickly masked it. "Regardless, it is too late to stop your demise, Leonardo." She pulled her tanto out of its sheath. "My Foot long to see you cut down just as you have cut down so many of them. No long torture, just death. At least you shall die knowing that your pathetic family shall soon join you."

Karai pulled back the tanto, ready to strike as Leonardo glared at her coldly. But before the knife could fall, shouts of surprise rose up from the library floor.

Raphael, his hands free, was standing on the base of Oroku Saki's statue, sending the candles hurtling over the heads of the Foot and directly into several of the bookshelves. Some of the flames were extinguished during flight, but others stayed lit only to crash into the books. One hit a Foot ninja that was sitting on top of a bookshelf and caused the arm of the black uniform to burst into flames. The ninja leapt down, accidently brushing along a row of books, while slapping at the flames and screaming. The entire bookcase was engulfed in flames in a matter of seconds.

Karai ran to the edge of the balcony, her eyes filling with horror as she saw several more rows of books catch fire. "STOP HIM!"

Raphael kicked out at a ninja that was advancing on him and then leapt onto another's head. He jumped across several heads until he reached the ninja that was holding the two turtle's weapons. He grabbed his sai and promptly slammed the pommel into the side of the ninja's head. He ducked as a katana swung over his head, grabbing Leonardo's katana at the same time and slinging the sheaths over his shoulder.

Up on the balcony, Leonardo swept outwards with his leg, knocking over the guards holding him. Another raised a katana. The turtle twisted so that the swipe cut through the ropes binding his hands.

"Thanks."

He snatched up one of the fallen ninja's katana just in time to parry a blow from Karai.

"You will die today! It is your fate!"

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but don't plan on that!"

They exchanged blows again. Leonardo barely managed to duck as yet another Foot swung a bo staff where his head had been moments before. He leapt up over Karai's swipe while simultaneously kicking back and knocking the Foot out.

All of a sudden, everyone on the balcony was showered with pieces of glass. Several of the Foot cried out as pieces pierced their skin. The smoke from the fires below rushed towards the broken window, temporarily obscuring whatever had come through the glass. It took only a moment for the smoke to clear slightly, revealing Michelangelo crouched next to the window, his eyes red with blood-rage.

* * *

_So...like it? Too bad of a cliffie? Please review! Flames will be used to cook pizza!_


	13. Chapter 12

_A/N: Hi, everyone! Thank you all so much for your wonderful reviews! Aren't you lucky? I had writer's block until about 6 o'clock last night so all of this was written between then and now. Just FYI, I'm having trouble receiving emails from FF telling me that you've reviewed, so I'm sorry if I don't respond very quickly or if I miss you. I will do my best to reply, though._

_HUGE thanks to Moogs for betaing this! 1 4 3!_

**Disclaimer: I own them all! Bwahahaha! Oh wait, I don't? Grr... (goes and pouts in a corner)**

* * *

As Michelangelo stood up, the smoke tendrils of the smoke still surrounded him, grasping and twirling around his arms and legs. The pale, sickly light of the almost-full moon lit him on one side and the dancing red-orange of the flames shone upon his other side. His eyes appeared to be literally glowing. Many of the ninja gasped in astonishment and some of the more superstitious took a couple of steps backwards.

On the floor of the library, Raphael was certain that he heard someone yelling something about a demon turtle.

However, the surprise did not stop the Foot from fighting for more than a few moments.

As Michelangelo surged towards Karai on the balcony above, the Foot ninja surged towards Raphael on the library floor below. Raphael gritted his teeth and slammed his elbow into the gut of a ninja that was coming up behind him.

"Raph! Get up here!"

Raphael spun around at the sound of Leonardo's voice. His blue-clad brother had somehow gotten a hold of another katana and was holding off ninja with one and Karai with the other. More Foot were swarming up the stairwell towards the balcony.

Slamming the pommel of his sai against the temple of one ninja and then immediately ducking under the blow of another, Raphael was having a hard time even getting any closer to the stairs and he knew that he couldn't spring up the distance between the library floor and the balcony's edge. Gathering his energy, he leapt up onto a ninja's head and proceeded to run across the crowd, knocking Foot over as he passed. At last, he reached the entrance to the corridor that lead to the stairs, slipped in, and slammed the double doors behind him.

"Thanks, that's just what I needed."

He grabbed a bo out of an attacking Foot's hands and shoved the surprised ninja to the floor. Pressing the doors back closed as the ninja from the other side tried to open them, Raphael quickly slid the bo through the door's handles, effectively locking it.

The ninja who had been swarming up the stairs only a moment before, spun around and rushed back downwards towards the turtle.

* * *

_This isn't the right one! Get around him!_

Michelangelo found himself face to face with the sword-wielding Foot Elite. He struck out with his nunchucks, flailing them and then suddenly letting them fall with bone-breaking force. Even so, the Elite managed to block or dodge most of the blows.

"This isn't working," the turtle told the voice. "_They_ weren't supposed to be here!"

_Just extra help,_ the voice assured him as he ducked under a katana and kicked out, hitting the Elite's shin. _If they're already here then you can't get in trouble for helping them. A win-win situation, if you will. Now get around this idiot and go after Karai!_

"But Leo's doing that and it's always been his thing to go after the big bosses!"

_Look at him. He would welcome your help. He would thank you for it. After all, this is no video game and Karai is much worse than any big boss that any programmer could imagine! See how Karai is pressing him back into those other ninja?_

"Yeah, well…" A nunchuck slammed into the Elite's face and the ninja crumpled to the floor.

_Finally! Let's go!_

* * *

Donatello halted after a leap to check the tracker again. To his horror, the blip indicating his brother was joined by two other blips, none of which were moving any significant distance.

"What is it, my son?" Master Splinter landed next to him.

"Very bad news, if I'm reading this right. Mikey's in Foot HQ. It's almost like he knew where Raph and Leo were and went to join them."

Master Splinter sighed and closed his eyes. "I sense that it was not your brothers that drew Michelangelo to the gate of our enemies. No, it is something both beyond him and yet within him."

Donatello looked at his adopted father in puzzlement. "What do you mean, Sensei?"

The old rat merely shook his head. "I am not sure. For a moment, I could sense his spirit again, yet it has almost disappeared once more. We must move on."

As they began to run again, Donatello pulled out the headphones for his Shell Cell and pressed the speed dial. "April, we're definitely going to need that quick getaway."

* * *

Raphael burst through a pair of ninja and onto the balcony. He was almost immediately knocked over as Chaplain ran past him towards a doorway on the balcony's far end. Growling and deciding to ignore the fleeing scientist, the turtle slammed his shoulder into a Foot, pushing it over the balcony's railing and onto the heads of the ninja below. He coughed for a moment as he breathed in some of the smoke.

"Leo! Come on! We've gotta bolt!"

"Get Mikey out of here!" Leonardo parried a blow from Karai's tanto and then another from her katana. He ducked under her round kick and attempted to knock her supporting leg out from under her, but she spun that one up too. The thick air whooshed as her foot passed Leonardo's face by mere centimeters. "I'll be right behind you!"

Raphael punched a Foot ninja in the face and then double front-flipped over the dueling leaders' heads, landing right in front of Michelangelo.

"Mikey! Let's go!" Raphael grabbed his brother's forearm and tried to pull him towards the broken window.

In response, Michelangelo yanked his arm away and shoved Raphael away from him.

"What the shell'd you do that for?" Normally, the hot-headed turtle's tone would be enough to frighten the youngest into obeying or running for his life, but Michelangelo did not even act like he had noticed.

Again, Raphael placed himself directly in Michelangelo's path. Again, Michelangelo ignored him.

"Raph, get him out of here!" Leonardo called from behind him.

"I'm tryin' but he ain't goin'!"

All of a sudden, Michelangelo dashed around his brother, hurtling towards Karai. Taken by surprise, she couldn't block or dodge his kick and went flying backwards. Not waiting for her to even get back up, Michelangelo ran at her again. Karai rolled and the turtle's nunchucks slammed into the floor where she had been only a second before.

Leonardo shot Raphael a questioning look to which his brother replied with a shrug.

"Michelangelo! Come on! We're leaving!" Leonardo ran to his brother and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Michelangelo! Leave her! This entire place is going up!"

The orange-clad turtle spun around and faced his brothers. Leonardo gasped, seeing the empty redness that filled his youngest brother's eyes. For a brief, surprised moment, his hand lifted from Michelangelo's shoulder.

It was all that the youngest turtle needed.

He turned back to the now-standing Karai and began to attack with every ounce of speed and strength he possessed. It was all Karai could do to block his blows. He continued to press her backwards. Karai leapt backwards and suddenly an enormous flame licked the floor between her and the enraged turtle.

Down below, several ninja, now wearing street clothing, were squirting the flames with fire extinguishers, but nothing seemed to be working. Instead, the fire only grew more intense.

Michelangelo paced back and forth along the line of flames while both of his brothers hurried up to him.

"Mikey, we're getting you out o' here and back to Don!" Raphael grabbed his brother's arm and began to pull him towards the broken window even as sirens of fire crews began to wail and reverberate over the crackle of the flames.

Leonardo grabbed his brother's other arm. "We've got to get out of here before we're seen!"

Michelangelo yanked his arms from their grasps. The two oldest turtles had to duck quickly as orange-bound nunchucks shot out towards their heads.

On the other side of the flames, Karai began to run towards the door at the far end of the balcony. She flung it open, gladly gulping in lungfuls of the mostly smoke-free air.

Michelangelo spun around as he heard the door slam behind Karai and growled in fury. Suddenly pushing both of his brothers backwards, he ran towards the wall of flames and leapt through. It took him only seconds to reach the door.

"Mikey! No! Come on!"

Michelangelo, completely ignoring Leonardo's order, yanked the door open and disappeared into the hallway beyond.

Leonardo and Raphael exchanged a look and leapt through the flames after him.

* * *

_So, did you like it? You know, it only takes a few moments to press the review button and tell me what you think. Flames will be immediately extinguished for fear of lighting more wildfires._


	14. Chapter 13

_A/N: Thank you so much for your kind reviews, everyone! Thankfully, I'm receiving the Alerts again. My beta is on vacation, so I'm sorry if there are any errors and please feel free to point them out to me. Thanks and enjoy!_

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything more than a bunch of plots and some DVDs**

* * *

Leonardo and Raphael sped into the hallway just as firefighters poured into the library behind them. Far ahead, Michelangelo disappeared around a corner, apparently still running on Karai's heels. A couple of Foot ninja darted from one doorway to another as the two turtles ran by, but both clans ignored each other. Fire alarms blared throughout the building and there were many loud shouts coming from behind them as they sped after their youngest brother. The chase led up a staircase which they climbed two at a time. Unfortunately for Raphael, both Michelangelo and Leonardo could run much faster than he could and he found himself falling behind. It was then that he noticed the trail of crimson droplets that followed the eldest turtle.

"Leo, you're bleeding!"

"It's not too bad," Leonardo called back over his shoulder as they rounded yet another corner into a hallway at the top of the stairs. "My plastron warmed back up again."

Far at the end of the hallway, Michelangelo suddenly stopped and darted into a doorway. Moments later, his brothers reached the same doorway only to find that it led directly into a large, plush office—obviously Karai's. Michelangelo stood with his back to the door, his nunchucks out and spinning wildly. Inside were both Karai and Chaplain. Karai was panting heavily but holding her tanto and katana steady in a defensive posture while Chaplain remained behind her holding some sort of gun-like device that Leonardo vaguely remembered seeing somewhere recently.

There was only a moment for the two new arrivals to register all of this before Michelangelo charged towards Karai. He easily blocked her counterattack with the chain of his nunchuku before lashing out again. His strike was also blocked.

Raphael started to move to help him but Leonardo put out his arm to block him. "The first sign of trouble and we're in, but let him do this. Maybe it will help."

Raphael crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes in displeasure, but he nodded tersely in agreement.

Meanwhile, Karai seemed to be tiring. However, Michelangelo still fought as though he felt as fresh as when he had just begun. She kicked out at him but he simply leaned backwards so that the swing missed him entirely. She immediately swung at him with her katana the moment her foot touched the ground. Mikey blocked it. He feigned right before spinning around to the right and slamming the end of one of his weapons into the back of her shoulder. She cried out in pain. A swift kick in the back sent her falling onto her hands and knees.

"Karai!" Chaplain glared angrily at Michelangelo as the youngest turtle growled menacingly at him. "That's it, freak! You're going down!"

The moment he lifted the gun with his finger on the trigger, Leonardo was in front of him and Raphael behind him. The red-clad turtle grabbed the scientist from behind, pinning his arms just as the finger squeezed the trigger. A loud, whining sound reverberated throughout the room.

Michelangelo abruptly stood motionless. The redness in his eyes seemed to dissolve, revealing sky blue and white. Even as Karai struggled to stand upright, he collapsed into a heap.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?" Raphael screamed, shaking Chaplain back and forth violently.

"I just turned him off!" The scientist cried out as the turtle continued to shake him. Raphael suddenly let go, sending him stumbling forwards.

"That gun was the thing we came here for," Leonardo realized as he gently picked up the youngest's limp form, giving thanks that Michelangelo was still breathing, while cautiously eyeing Karai. Both of her blades were lying on the floor, but that didn't mean that she was unarmed.

He cautiously backed towards where Raphael was standing by the window while Chaplain unsteadily staggered towards his mistress. In a flash, Michelangelo had switched arms and Raphael leaped out of the open window onto the balcony one story below.

"Don't _ever_ touch him again, Karai!"

"There's no need to," she smiled almost mischievously as she leaned back against the wall. "At least, not that I now have you." She jabbed a button with her elbow and a thick sheet of metal slammed over the window behind him.

"What?!" Leonardo spun around at the sound of the slam and then back towards his two enemies while re-drawing his katana.

"Do not worry, Leonardo. You have earned a swift death."

At his mistress's words, Chaplain pulled a laser blaster from behind his back and pointed it directly at the turtle. "I've always wanted to say this, so say hello to my little friend!" He stepped in front of Karai as she rolled her eyes and began to blast the spot Leonardo had been only microseconds before. The blasts went right through the sheet of metal.

Leonardo landed gracefully on Karai's desk. Glancing down quickly as his foot accidently brushed against a series of buttons. He grinned and pressed two of them. The room's lights went out and the sheet of metal over the window scraped slowly back up, revealing the brilliant light of the moon. For good measure, Leonardo threw down a smoke pellet before dashing back towards the window.

Even as he coughed, Chaplain pointed his gun at the turtle and fired twice. The first shot went wildly over the turtle's head. The second was countered by Leonardo's katana. The bolt bounced off of the shiny metal and straight back to the shooter's shoulder. Screaming in pain, Chaplain reeled backwards into Karai as Leonardo made his escape out of the window, joining his brethren below.

"You okay?"

Leonardo could easily make out the worry on Raphael's face. "I'm fine," he assured him. "How's Mikey?"

"His breathin's steady but I dunno else-wise."

The eldest turtle gently stroked the youngest's head. "I really hope that device actually worked."

"Me too, bro."

As if on command, they started to run towards the edge of the building. Luckily, it had been designed so that Foot ninja could get on and off easily by the roof, making it simple for the two turtles escape.

* * *

_You idiot! You almost had her and you went and collapsed!_ The voice sounded much weaker than before, as though it was struggling just to scold.

"I don't think I really wanted to kill her."

_I'll tell you what you are and aren't supposed to think! Get your act together!_

Michelangelo could feel himself being set gently down on a hard surface. Somewhere in the background, he was sure that he could hear Donatello's voice mixing with Raphael's and Leonardo's, but the words were muffled; it was as though he was listening underwater. Strong arms picked him up again.

_They're taking you away! Get up now!_

"No." Michelangelo was surprised at how powerful he felt for saying that. "I'm safe here. Shell, I can't even move. Why on earth would I leave? Anyway, I'm pretty sure that my bros wouldn't let me go back."

_You could get around them,_ the voice suggested, its tone becoming sultry and seductive. _You always have been able to._

He was set down again and there was the sensation of acceleration accompanied by vibrations coming up from the floor below his shell.

"But I don't want to. I just want to be _me_ again."

_You are you. You're more powerful than ever before! Couldn't you feel the strength coursing through your body? Think of how useful that could be. All you have to do is to continue to embrace me._

"I don't want you in my head anymore."

_Sorry, I'm not going anywhere. I've told you. I'm a part of you. You can't just get rid of me anymore than you can get rid of one of your arms._

"There's always amputation," Michelangelo laughed grimly to himself.

The voice was silent for a moment before switching to another tactic. _You've always wanted your brothers to treat you like an equal and I can give you the abilities you need for that!_

Arms again picked him up. He was getting tired of this and his head was hurting. He just wanted to lie still, even if it was for just a moment.

"I. Don't. Want. You. Is it really that difficult for you to understand?"

_With me around, they won't keep treating you like a little kid. You can be whatever you want to be!_

"I _want_ to be a kid! That's who I am because I like it that way!"

Once again, he was set down, though this time on what felt like some sort of table. There were indistinguishable mutterings all around him.

_You always have wanted to be as strong as Raph and as good as Leo._ The voice was starting to sound desperate. _I can give you both strength _and_ skill. And you can still do whatever you want._

There was a sharp prick on his arm.

"Shut up and shut up NOW!" Michelangelo felt like he was yelling inside of his head. Redness suddenly clouded everything.

_I will NOT!_ The voice sounded like an annoyed five-year old. _I have every right to be here!_

"Get out of my head! I don't want your hate! I don't want your anger! I don't like all the things you made me do! Get OUT!" A flash of dazzling white shot through the crimson, causing his body to shake. From outside, a voice started to yell and something was fitted over his mouth and nose followed by a funny smell.

_You can never truly get rid of me,_ the voice warned. _I will always be a part of you. Deep inside, you know. You've known me all along._

"You may be a part of me, but that doesn't mean I have to listen to you!"

_But—_

"No buts! Just get out! Not one more word from you!"

_You can't! I'm a _part_ of you!_

A feeling of another presence, a comforting presence, began to press back on the last bits of redness.

_NOOOOOOO!_

"Yes." Michelangelo could feel himself start to grin. "You're going now. Goodbye."

The voice let out a growl. _Then, until we meet again…_ It faded out and a sense of peace filled Michelangelo's mind for the first time in months. He could feel the funny smell pulling at the last scraps of consciousness that he was clinging to. Everything faded to black.

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_The evil voice thingy is telling you to review! Do not resist it! _:D _Flames will be used for hotdogs!_


	15. Epilogue

_A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, favorited, alerted, or just flat out read this story. You have all been completely wonderful! This is the last of the Holiday Trilogy. I'm sorry to say that I am not planning on writing any more following this story line (though I'm not going to say that I won't, given that then I probably will, lol!). Anyway, thanks to you all for sticking with me for so long!_

_HUGE thanks to Moogs for betaing this for me (and for putting up with my wackyness!)_

**Disclaimer: You'd think after all this time, I'd have a little more than nothing...**

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March 23

_It's all over. It's FINALLY all over…I hope. My bros said I was out for almost two days but it was partly Donnie's fault for giving me the sleeping gas stuff. He said that he did some surgery on my neck and completely disabled that thing in my neck and it won't be able to ever work again even though he couldn't get it out. _

_But that electro-doodad isn't what scares me._

_What scares me are the dreams. The memories._

_I didn't remember at first and no one would tell me what happened. I musta scared them real bad or something. But the dreams… I can't believe I'd do that. I finally coaxed the truth outa Leo—but he didn't like telling me. Shell, he only told me 'cause Sensei practically scolded him to tell me._

_Only Sensei knows about the voice. I wasn't even going to tell anyone, but he already knew. He was doing the whole 'meditate and connect with your mind' thing when I started having a seizure. Oh yeah, did I mention that? Only found that out 'cause Raph practically flew off the handle about it._

_I dunno…that voice… It's worse than having some sort of freaky alien thing burst out of your chest. No, it's some freaky _me_ thing bursting into my mind. And I don't know if it's really all gone. It's like some part of me woke up and now's just taking a nap. I didn't even know I could feel like that. Is this what Raph feels like all the time? Afraid that if he gets too angry, he'll lose control? That something will pop up and start taking over?_

_I really didn't want this._

_I didn't want to have to feel all grown up like this…_

There was a soft rapping at the door to his room and Michelangelo spun around, blocking the book lying open on the table. Standing in the doorway was Master Splinter.

"Come, Michelangelo. It is Easter morning. Today is a time for being with your family, not for hiding alone."

Michelangelo bit his bottom lip.

"Are you feeling alright, my son?" Splinter walked into the room until he was directly in front of the youngest turtle. "Something is bothering you." This was a statement, not a question.

Michelangelo's shoulders slumped. "What if _it_ comes back?" he whispered, his voice cracking. "I-I don't know what it'd make me do!"

His sensei set a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Should this voice return, we shall face it together. Your family is here to support you, Michelangelo."

"Yeah, well…" the turtle sighed. "I wish it didn't have to be like this. I just want to be like I used to."

A sad smile tugged at the corners of the rat's lips as understanding flickered in his eyes. "Healing requires time, my son. Nothing truly great is ever done immediately."

"No offense, Sensei, but I don't think that this is really 'great.' It's more like 'how can life totally mess with Mikey.' Why did all this have to happen to me? It's not like I did anything!" He could feel a tear starting to form in the corner of his eye and quickly wiped it away with the back of his hand.

"Michelangelo, do you know what an Easter egg symbolizes?"

"Um, what?" Splinter's question caught him completely off guard. "What's a candy egg got to do with anything?"

Master Splinter shook his head with a smile. "Not a 'candy egg,' as you call it, but a true Easter egg." He pulled an un-dyed egg from inside his kimono and held it out for Michelangelo to see. "The shell of this egg is beautiful, perfect, is it not?"

Michelangelo took it in his hands and looked it over carefully. The shell was absolutely smooth, without a single blemish. "Yeah, Master Splinter. What's it for?"

"This egg could to remain as it is, with its shell exactly as it has been since it was laid; or a new life, in the form of a chick, could spring from it. Now, in which way is this egg more desirable? As a whole shell that can only be still and never grow or explore? Or as a chick who has the entire world laid out before its feet?"

"What exactly does this have to do with me, Sensei?"

"In order for the chick to live, the shell around it must first be broken. The process of breaking through the shell is long and hard for the chick yet it must persevere."

"Sorry, Sensei," Michelangelo handed the egg back. "I'm still not getting it."

"The lesson of the Easter egg is simple, my son. While what once seemed to be wonderful may now become cracked and discarded like the broken shell of an egg, the process of change brings forth something even more wonderful."

"So you're saying that I should just grow up?" Michelangelo sounded hurt.

"No, my son. I am asking you to not be disheartened because of what you know has changed."

"Do I still get Easter candy, though?"

Master Splinter laughed, a twinkle shone in his eyes. "Yes. You may still have your candy. Come and join your brothers."

"Okay." A genuine smile crossed Michelangelo's face and he felt suddenly at peace. "I'll be there in just a minute. Let me finish this really quick."

"All right, my son, but do not tarry for too long."

"'Kay, Sensei." Michelangelo turned back to his diary as Splinter left the room. He picked the pencil back up with a smile.

_I think I'll be okay with all of this._

**The End**

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_So there you have it. The end. Please review and I'll give you a piece of left-over digital Easter candy! Flames will be used to melt chocolate for an ice cream topping!_


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